A New Future
by WayWardWonderer
Summary: Sonic accidentally travels through time and alters the timeline, creating a grim future. He must find a way to return to the past and prevent the horrible future. The fate of the world, and the fate of Sonic's friends are at stake. Eggman's schemes have finally succeeded, crippling the world and endangering many innocent lives. Tails, Amy and Knuckles try to fight back, but fail.
1. Into the Storm

Sonic the Hedgehog, the fastest hedgehog in history, sprinted through the Mystic Ruins from the local train station. He easily ascended the ancient stone stairway, up the hill and to the small private workshop that Miles 'Tails' Prower used as a second home.

The bright orange sun was turning red as it began setting behind the large mountain range that connected the jungle and ruins to the floating island above, Angel Island. Dark, thickly building rain clouds unfortunately concealed the unique island's enigmatic beauty from sight.

"Hey Tails!" Sonic greeted as he skidded to a stop just inches from Tails sitting on the small step outside the workshop door. "What's up?"

"Hey Sonic!" The chipper twin-tailed fox jumped up and excitedly took the sky with his tails spinning in perfect synchronization. He hovered just above Sonic's head. "Glad you could make it!"

"I had to show up, your message sounded urgent!"

Tails landed in front of Sonic with a light thump. "Yup, I made an _amazing_ discovery, and just you _have_ to see it!"

"Lead the way!" Sonic gave Tails a quick thumbs up in response.

Sonic followed Tails inside the small workshop. Despite it's modest size the workshop housed many impressive inventions and the walls were lined with blueprints of inventions yet to come. Tools of all trades were littered on the floor and on the multiple pegboards mounted on the far wall. Below the boards there was a large metallic desk sitting against the same wall, and sitting on it was something red and glowing.

"Is that...?" Sonic pointed at the red object.

"Yup!" Tails picked it up and proudly displayed it in his palm for his friend to see. "A Chaos Emerald!"

"Whoa! Where'd you get it?" Sonic asked with astonishment as he held his hand out to take it.

Tails casually placed the Chaos Emerald in Sonic's opened palm. "I found it when I was exploring the ancient temple in the Mystic Ruins. It was deep inside, too. Hidden away in a secret chamber, with a second miniature altar that was used to honor the larger altar that houses the Master Emerald."

"The altar that sits way up high on Angel Island?" Sonic confirmed curiously.

"Yup. Knuckles said the chamber was once used as a sanctuary for the innocent inhabitants of the jungle." Tails hovered up to the rafters of the workshop and pulled down a large rolled up blueprint. He unfolded the design like a map and showed it to Sonic. "See this? This is my latest design."

Sonic stared at the white outline of some kind of machine on the blue paper. "What is it? A weapon?"

"Of course not!" Tails grinned as he rolled the print back up. "It's a design for a functioning TIME MACHINE."

"A what?! No way!" Sonic was sincerely impressed.

"Yup! After Eggman used time travel to try and stop you and your past self from saving the world, I had a discussion with my past self and we came up with the concept of a time travel machine."

"We? You mean you sat and planned with yourself while I... I mean, well, yeah, me and myself were running through our past... and, uh, future..." Sonic was trying to figure out how to best word his time travel and the concept of running alongside himself from another era of time. "Whatever, you know what I meant! While we were running through time, getting the flow to move on its own again, you and your past self were making designs?"

Tails grinned again as he flew back up to the rafters to stow away the controversial and magnificent blueprint to keep it safe. "Yup! Pretty neat, huh?"

"Sure is." Sonic looked at the Chaos Emerald in his palm. "And I take it this is the key to making the machine work."

"Yup!" Tails confirmed with his biggest grin yet. "I did some studying on the Chaos Emeralds and the legendary power that they can produce. I think the power is not only enough to allow a time gate to open, but it should also stabilize the wormhole, making time travel _possible_!"

"To go backward? Or to go forward?"

"Either way! It's _entirely_ possible!" Tails beamed proudly.

"But... won't that mess with the natural chain of events?"

Tails winked. "That's the 'butterfly effect'! Can the actions of one person really affect the outcome of the entire world? Can going back in time and making a different decision cause a catastrophic chain of events as a result? Can going into the future affect the present?"

"And... once you go back or you go forward, can you get back to your original timeline?"

"I... uh... Hm..." Tails put his hand to his chin and closed his eyes as he pondered the notion. "I would like to think so, but if you go back into the past and alter the future, our present, would the present still have the knowledge of time travel and subsequently have an existing time gate? Or, maybe going to the future could set off a negative chain of events that could only be remedied by the destruction of the time machine in the past, our present, which would make it impossible for the traveler of the future to come back..." Tails opened his eyes and looked at Sonic. "That's a good question! And I can't answer it. Not now."

"So... are you going to put off time travel?"

"For now!" Tails replied with a heavy yawn as he stretched tiredly. "Wow, it's already pretty late, huh? It looks like it might storm, too."

"Yeah, but I don't mind. Distance is nothing to me!"

"Thanks for coming all the same."

"No problem." Sonic tried to hand the Chaos Emerald back to Tails, but he put his hand up and shook his head.

"Nah, you hold onto it. That way I know it's safe!"

"Are you sure? Don't you want to keep studying it?"

"I still have the yellow Chaos Emerald used to power the 'Tornado 2'. If I need to study the Chaos Emeralds further I'm covered."

"Alright, well, see ya' later Tails."

"See ya'!

In a blur of blue Sonic bolted from the workshop to the neighboring train station. Unfortunately the last train for the evening had just departed.

"Darn, well, guess I'm walking." Sonic casually tossed the red Chaos Emerald into the air and caught it again. "Who am I kidding? I'm running!"

Sonic climbed up onto the elevated rail track and ran toward the tunnel. As he ran he realized that since there were no more trains on the track he wouldn't have to worry about running into any incoming traffic.

He ran a little faster.

The red Chaos Emerald clenched in Sonic's grip began to glow brighter.

The rain clouds continued to build, concealing the dark sky and the twinkling stars beyond. There was a rumble of thunder.

Sonic ran a little faster still. The Chaos Emerald glowed even brighter.

Small drops of rain started falling. The fresh rain brought out the intense aroma and beauty of the plant life all around.

Not wanting to get caught in the rain, Sonic ran even faster. The Chaos Emerald glowed even brighter! A wave of energy escaped the gem and began radiating up Sonic's arm. But he didn't feel it.

The clouds opened up sending a deluge of warm summer rain to the earth below.

"Gah! I hate being wet!" Sonic complained, feeling his thick blue quills dampening with each drop of rain.

Putting all his energy into his speed, Sonic forced himself to run faster and faster, wanting to desperately get out of the strengthening storm and to his home.

The red Chaos Emerald continue to emit an impressive wave of energy, it's strength increased at the same interval as Sonic's increasing speed. The glow became an intense and almost blinding beacon.

"What the...?" Sonic finally took notice of the Chaos Emerald in his grip. "What's going on?"

In a single bright red flash Sonic felt his entire body lift up from the ground as the power of the Chaos Emerald unleashed itself. Sonic found himself floating in mid-air then suddenly flying forward at an incredible speed that he had never felt before. The red light that encompassed him was intensely bright and comfortingly warm. Before Sonic had the time to react or try to understand what was happening to him, the energy surge ceased as quickly as it began.

Sonic then felt himself falling. Falling from a great, impossible height... Energy surged through his entire body and left a red static charge running over his blue fur and quills.

"Whoa!" Sonic found himself falling head first to the thick jungle so far below.

With a heavy 'thud' Sonic fell from the sky and landed on his chest in the middle of the dense and isolated jungle.

"Oooohhhh..." Sonic groaned with pain and shut his eyes. His hand instinctively tightened his grip on the Chaos Emerald as he pulled his arm closer to his body and tucked it under his aching chest.

A butterfly landed on Sonic's nose, tickling it. He opened his eyes and focused on the bright blue butterfly sitting on the very tip of his black nose. "Can I help you?" He commented playfully.

The butterfly flapped its wings once before it took off, fluttering into the jungle and out of sight.

Pushing himself up from the ground with one hand, Sonic kneeled on one knee and looked around. "Where am I?" The thick jungle looked very much like the jungle just outside of the Mystic Ruins, but there was something different about. Something ominous and foreboding.

The glow of the rising sun caught Sonic's attention. "Morning? Wasn't the sun just setting a few minutes ago?"

Rising to his feet Sonic brushed the dirt from his pelt on his chest and arms. "This is so weird..."

It was then he remembered the Chaos Emerald. "Wait a second!" He opened his palm and stared at the mystical gem. "Why did this thing glow? What did it do to me?"

Sonic looked himself up and down. "Still blue, so I didn't go Super. I should go ask Tails."

Following the seldom tread trail on the jungle floor, Sonic jogged toward the lone ladder that rested against the cliff edge. On the cliff was the mine cart used to carry travelers from the Mystic Ruins to the jungle. It was the quickest way to Tails' workshop!

"Hey, wait a second..." Sonic found the ladder, but it was broken in half! "What happened here?"

Taking a few paces back from the ladder, Sonic gave himself a running start and jumped up as high as he could. With on hand he managed to get a grip on the lowest rung from the top half of the ladder still attached to the cliff. Pulling himself up by one hand Sonic put both hands on the rungs and ascended the ladder quickly, but carefully.

At the top of the cliff Sonic was surprised to see that the heavy mine cart was tipped onto its side, and from all the dirt and weather exposure that marred the cart. Sonic could tell that it had been left and unattended in that position for some time now.

"Who did that?" Sonic tried to tip the cart back onto the tracks but it was too heavy. "I'll deal with it later, right now I need to find Tails!"

Ignoring the cart and using the tracks Sonic jogged at a brisk pace and followed the tunnel through the mountain and to the Mystic Ruins on the other side.

Stepping out of the dim tunnel into the bright morning light, Sonic couldn't believe his eyes. "No... what happened?! What's going on?!"

The once beautiful land, preserved by nature and the power of the Master Emerald had been ravaged by unfathomable carnage! The small cabin that sheltered the explorers had been destroyed, burned to ashes. The train station had been blown apart, leaving only charred timbers and twisted track behind. The train tracks had been destroyed by a powerful blast, cutting off access from Station Square entirely.

On the hill beyond the train station was Tails' workshop. It was still standing, but it had been severely damaged by some sort of attack!

"No.. Tails! Tails?" Sonic called out as he ran for the workshop in the distance. "This isn't happening, this is NOT happening!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	2. Everything Changes

Sonic sprinted his way up the crumbling, scorched and unstable ancient stairway. Tails' workshop looked as though it were the only structure left standing in the entire Mystic Ruins, and it looks uninhabitable. The roof had been caved in and patched in several locations, the windows were broken out and boarded up from the inside and there was no light slipping under the doorway or through the windows.

"Tails?! TAILS!" Sonic called for his unseen friend as he skidded to an abrupt halt just outside the single doorway of the damaged building. "What the..."

The doorway itself had been reinforced with heavy steel, meta girders, bolts and surveillance equipment. Various dents of many sizes marred the door, indicating repeated failed attempts to break in over an extended period of time.

"Tails?" Sonic called out again. "It's me! Sonic!"

Above the doorway a single surveillance camera began moving on its own. A beam of pale blue light emanated from the camera and it scanned Sonic's body up and down at a brisk pace.

"What now?" Sonic asked himself as he waited for the scan to finish.

An electronic, feminine voice spoke out. _'Confirmed positive identification: Sonic the Hedgehog. Access granted_.'

From the inside of the workshop Sonic could hear the loud clanging and echo of the heavy bolts and tumblers of the locks unfastening. The door opened from the inside outward, in a single heavy but stable motion.

"So weird..." Sonic commented as he bravely set foot inside the still dark workshop. The door closed itself behind him, blanketing the interior of the workshop in thick blackness. "Tails? Are you in here, buddy?"

A single spotlight of intense white light shone down from the ceiling, stunning Sonic and hurting his eyes. He lifted a hand to shield his sight as he focused on the sound of approaching footsteps. "Tails?"

All of the lights in the workshop turned on, bathing the room in white. Standing just outside of the radius of the spotlight overhead stood Mile "Tails' Prower, but he wasn't the same Tails that Sonic had seen just moments before.

The young fox was now taller, his height matching Sonic's. His muzzle was extended looking more canine, like a wolf. There was a small portion of his right ear missing and he was wearing heavy duty gloves and work boots. There was an electronic pad of some kind in his hands.

"It really is you." Tails commented without emotion to the blue hedgehog standing before him.

"Tails... What the-"

"Don't say anything!" Tails demanded in a deeper, more mature voice than Sonic remembered. "Why did you come back?"

"What? What do you mean? We're friends, I was worried that something-"

"Where were you when we needed you?" His light blue eyes shifted into a hurt, angry glare as he laid his ears back in an intimidating fashion.

"Tails, I don't-"

"Stop calling me 'Tails'." He looked away from Sonic, tears welling up in his eyes. "No one calls me 'that' anymore."

"I don't understand. What happened here? What happened to you?"

The fox begrudgingly turned his back to Sonic, revealing the grim truth that he was no longer twin-tailed fox.

Sonic stared in horror at the scars that riddled Tails' back, laving thin bald patches in his pelt. His single, remaining tail hung on the floor, being dragged along the ground. "Tails..."

The fox turned back with a bitter glare over his shoulder. "I told you, that is NOT my name. It's Miles."

"M-miles..." Sonic repeated in absolute shock at the sight of his best friend being physically and emotionally damaged. "Tell me, what happened? Why are you..."

"Older?" Miles finished the question for Sonic as he approached the large metal workbench against the wall.

Sonic just stared, wide-eyed at Miles with absolute awe and confusion as painful regret filled his heart.

"You tell me, why haven't you aged?" Miles demanded coldly.

"What?" Sonic was thoroughly confused by the bizarre question. "T- Miles," Sonic corrected himself. "I just left your workshop only a few minutes ago, how is this possible?"

Miles slammed his fists down on the workbench. "You tell me! Where were you?!"

"I- I don't..."

"Leave." Miles hid his tears as they began rolling down his face and muzzle.

"I..." Sonic couldn't even begin to explain what he had experienced with the Chaos Emerald, he couldn't even begin to explain what he was seeing at that very moment.

"GO!"

"Miles... I..." Sonic took a step back. "Okay, I'll go. But I won't go far." Sonic hid his sorrow as he respected Miles' request.

As Sonic reluctantly walked back to the door and walked through, Miles looked up at the wall and at the shadow Sonic had cast. The door closed, engulfing the shadow and leaving Miles alone in his dark workshop.

"Why... Why did you leave?" Miles whispered aloud to himself feeling betrayed. "We needed you. I trusted you. I believed in you..."

* * *

In a daze of unbridled confusion and a sense of failure, Sonic walked slowly down the jagged stone stairway and toward the destroyed train station's ruins. "What... happened?!" Sonic asked himself, still unable to even begin to understand what happened in such a short time. "Tails... what happened to you? Who hurt you?"

He took in the desolate landscape that surrounded him. The mountainous passageway that once lead from the Mystic Ruins to Angel Island was long gone. The tunnel collapsed cutting off all access to the ethereal island floating high in the sky. The surrounding grass and trees were all damaged by some brute force that left the natural beauty in a state of charred, healing ugliness.

"Ex-excuse me." A gentle feminine voice called out to Sonic. She stammered nervously. "Are you... Sonic the Hedgehog?"

Sonic, startled to hear someone calling his name, turned on his heel to see a stranger watching him near the small waterfall in the distance. "Yeah, that's me." He confirmed with a semi-aggressive tone. He didn't recognize this face and was still unsure about what was happening.

The curious stranger calmly approached Sonic. She was a young and tall otter, no older than Sonic himself. Her pelt was a soft teal with white trim, she had long hair a shade darker than the rest of her fur, her eyes were dark purple and she had a long tail. Her clothes were that of an explorer. Tan cargo shorts, a yellow top with a dark green jacket and thick, black hiking boots.

Sonic noticed that the stranger had only one real leg; the second was a high-tech metal prosthetic. But she didn't have any problems whatsoever with walking, so he didn't pay it much mind as she shyly stood before him.

"Hello. My name is Torrent the Otter." She greeted Sonic warmly and offered her webbed and yellow, fingerless gloved hand to shake properly. "But everyone calls me Tori." She blushed a little. "Do you know Miles?"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	3. Facing the Past

Sonic slowly accepted Tori's offered hand to shake. He had never seen her before, yet she already seemed to know him. She also knew that Tails' real name was in fact Miles. "Yeah, Ta- Miles," Sonic had to correct himself again. "is my best friend. The little brother I never had."

Tori smiled kindly at him. "He used to talk about you all the time. Sometimes I wondered if he was confusing one memory with another."

"What do you mean?" Sonic let his hand fall limp from hers. "Can you tell me what happened here?"

"You mean, you don't know?" Tori wasn't expecting this kind of reaction from the legendary hero she had been told about.

Sonic shook his head. "I can't figure out what happened, I was gone for only a few minutes..."

"You better come with me." Tory grabbed his hand and pulled him along the barren trail leading back to the jungle beyond the Mystic Ruins. "Shh! Get down!"

Sonic listened to Tori and ducked down behind some partially dead green leaves growing out of the mountain. "What is it?" He whispered cautiously.

Tori held a finger to her lips instructing him to be quiet before subtly pointing to a lone flying object high above in the clear blue sky.

Sonic focused his green eyes on the target in the distance. It was shaped like a suit of armor housing a single occupant. Two blazing engines at the suit's feet allowed it to fly freely and quickly. The suit itself was composed of a strong metallic alloy, perhaps platinum. The helmet had a black visor that stretched from ear to ear, allowing the pilot to see out but not allowing anyone else to see in.

Just as quickly as the suit appeared in the sky it disappeared in a flash of fire and speed over the neighboring ocean.

Sonic was impressed by the suits speed as it vanished from sight. "What was that?"

Tori looked at Sonic and frowned as she answered. "The enemy. The Renegade Soldier."

"Who?"

This time Tori shook her head. "We don't know who he is, exactly. No one does. He just appeared one day and began rounding up all those who oppose Dr. Robotnik."

"Robotnik?!" Sonic yelled in anger as he abruptly stood up, no longer shielded by the local flora. "What's that lame egg-head doing now?!"

Tori looked at Sonic with shock in her eyes. "You really don't know... Do you?"

Sonic didn't respond, what could he say in a moment like this?

Tori stood up straight and sighed sadly. "Come on, it's not safe here. We need to talk. There's so much you need to know."

The newly acquainted duo walked side by side into the long mining tunnel that connected the Mystic Ruins to the jungle beyond. "Tori, please, tell me what happened."

"Well, it's a long story..."

"Don't skip the details, I need to know. Don't hold back."

"Right." Tori took a deep breath and sighed again. "After you disappeared Dr. Robotnik attacked Station Square. He... He leveled the entire city! Miles and Knuckles tried to stop him but they just weren't strong enough. Dr. Robotnik easily took care of them and his reign as the new world ruler began."

"WORLD RULER?!" Sonic couldn't believe what he had heard. "What do you mean Tails- _Miles,_ and Knuckles lost? Those two would NEVER give up!"

"And they didn't." Tori confirmed. "I saw everything that happened, and I wish I could forget what I saw."

Sonic closed his eyes and clenched his fists in anger. "What did Eggman do to them? Is... Is that how Miles lost his..."

Tori's lack of response was all the response Sonic needed. She continued to speak in a somber tone. "Robotnik created a massive mechanism that started destroying the central plaza of Station Square. Everyone who fled from Twinkle Park, the hotel and the Train Station went running into the line of fire. Miles and Knuckles did their best to escort the citizens to safety while still trying to fight the large machine."

Sonic felt incredible guilt for not being at his friends' side during this battle.

"The machine used its long claw like hand to grab Miles..." Tori trailed off.

"And?" Sonic didn't want to know what happened next, but knew that it was important.

"That's when Robotnik set the machine to... self-destruct."

"Tails... was..."

"Caught in the blast. It... It sent him flying high into the sky. He landed in the ocean, unconscious... Knuckles dove into the water after him and pulled him to the surface, but the damage was already done."

"The blast... It..." Sonic know understood how Tails' back was completely covered in scars.

Tori closed her eyes in sorrow. "Knuckles pulled Miles to shore and careful picked him up. I... I ran over to them and told Knuckles to follow me back to my small village for shelter."

Sonic felt his inner rage mounting as Tori told him the painful story.

"My village is located on the other side of the jungle. Willow Glen."

"Tails... he survived. How?"

"The doctors in my village are very skilled. Miles was near death. The doctors managed to patch up his wounds and keep paralysis from setting in, but the damage to one of his tails was too extensive. They had to amputate."

Sonic felt his heart ache. Without the second tail, Tails himself could never fly again. He would be permanently grounded, unable to be free amongst the clouds and the stars.

"Miles was unconscious for four days. All the while he kept muttering your name in his fitful sleep. Knuckles stayed in the village until he was certain Miles would pull through. He returned to Station Square to fight and bring other evacuees to the village for shelter."

"How... how many survived?"

"More than you'd expect."

"Good." Sonic was only mildly relieved at this revelation. "That's good."

Tori continued the bleak tale. "When Miles finally woke up and the doctors told him about his condition, I... I never saw such... pain. It's as if he had no choice but to shut down emotionally to keep himself from feeling anything at all. He wouldn't speak to anyone but me."

Sonic glanced at Tori's prosthetic leg.

"After a few weeks he was strong enough to leave the village and he set out on foot, looking for you. He returned alone after a few months and locked himself away in his workshop."

A tear of anger welled up in Sonic's eye as his thoughts turned to his other friend. "What happened to Knuckles?" He asked as they stepped into the light at the end of the tunnel. "Where is he now?"

"Sonic... I..."

"Just, take me to him. Please."

Tori climbed down the ladder and dropped to the ground after the rungs on the ladder stopped. Sonic jumped down in a single impressive leap and landed next to Tori.

Tori put her hand sympathetically on Sonic's shoulder. "I...I can show you."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	4. Accepting the Present

Locked away in the darkness of his own workshop, Miles replayed the day's unexpected events over and over again in his mind. "How? How is it possible for Sonic to suddenly reappear, un-aged, after _six years_?"

He unconsciously began rubbing at his shoulder, reaching for one of the many scars that still pained him.

"It's as if Sonic had managed to elude the natural laws of time, as if he managed to travel through time without its constraints affecting him physically or mentally. But... how? It shouldn't be possible without a machine!"

Miles stared at the electronic pad that he had been using to control the security system of his workshop and to keep his personal calculations organized. There was a sudden blip on the screen indicating that his security program located a powerful energy source.

Changing the screen display to a detailed map of the region, Miles focused on the new reading and began tracking its movements. "Hmm... Located in the jungle. It's moving. The energy source isn't stationary, and it's moving at a controlled pace... As if... On foot. That's it!"

Miles ran to the far side of his workshop and punched in an elaborate security code on the small, hidden control panel. The door to a heavily armored and concealed safe opened. Inside the safe a yellow aura emanated, filling the workshop in a comforting glow. "The Chaos Emerald. The same Chaos Emerald I gave to Sonic the night he... disappeared. That's how he did it!"

* * *

Tori led Sonic through the now overgrown and dense jungle. Sonic recognized his bearings thanks to the massive echidna temple located in the heart of the jungle, the tall stone peak of the ancient temple pierced the majestic blue sky.

Turning onto an offbeat trail, Tori stepped into a small clearing concealed behind a curtain of large, green leaves.

"Tori?" Sonic stepped into the clearing after her. "What is this place? Where's Knuckles?"

Tori bowed her head sadly and pointed to a small stone monolith and shrine with a single white lily and a bunch of grapes. "He's here."

Sonic's eyes widened with absolute shock as he approached the monolith. There was an inscription carved into its face: _'Knuckles the Echidna: Guardian, Friend, Hero'_.

"No..." Sonic fell to his knees, his shoulders sagged and his ears lowered in mournful disbelief. "It can't be. He can't be..."

Tori put her hand on his Sonic's shoulder sympathetically. "He didn't suffer. His final act was protecting the Master Emerald, preventing Robotnik from harnessing its power."

"Eggman..." Sonic growled between his clenched teeth. "He'll pay for this..." Sonic quickly rose to his feet, causing Tori to retract her grip from his shoulder. "Tori, where are the other survivors?"

"Hiding in Willow Glen. The weak, wounded and sick have sanctuary, but my village is pacifistic. We don't have an army."

"But there _must_ be a rebellion forming somewhere! No one would just sit aside and let Eggman take over the world!"

"There _is_ a rebellion. They're planning an attack against Eggman, but they don't have the strength to overpower him. Not yet."

"Take me to the them. I want to help." He gave Tori a fierce, confident stare over his shoulder. "I _need_ to help!"

She nodded in agreement. "Okay!" Tori stepped out of the secluded memorial back onto the trail. "Follow me."

* * *

Miles examined his Chaos Emerald resting on his workbench and compared its power to the possible combined power of the second Chaos Emerald, still in Sonic's possession. "If we can channel the power of the Chaos Emeralds into a single energy source, we will be able to send out a powerful E.M.P.; disabling all of Eggman's robots and computers. His army would be crippled and we can take him down once and for all!"

He picked up the yellow Chaos Emerald and gazed into the purity of the ethereal gem. "It seems so long ago that this was my reward for... for _saving_ Station Square. Now the city is nothing more than desiccated memorial to my failures..."

He closed his eyes tightly and found himself lost in the memories of the horrific attack. "Knuckles, I never had the chance to thank you for saving my life. But I _do_ have the chance to ensure that your sacrifice wasn't in vain. I will make things right."

Miles clutched the emerald to his chest. "I promise."

* * *

Sonic followed Tori the long-standing echidna temple. The small doorway inside the snake head mural, that Sonic had once used to enter the temple, had long since been blocked off by time and nature. Tori walked up the stone stairway to the hidden, sealed door. "There's a secret entrance right here." She pointed to an odd stone partially jutting out from entryway.

Standing at Tori's side, Sonic watched as she pressed the stone into the wall and the floor at her feet opened up slowly, revealing a long staircase spiraling downward into the interior of the temple. A row of torches lined the staircase, lighting the hidden pathway in a fiery glow.

"Follow me." Tori led the way down the stairs. She took a single torch from the wall to use as a guide down the steep steps. "This is the secret passage we use to get in and out of the temple without being spotted."

Sonic quietly followed Tori down the stairs. His lungs ached as he took in breaths of stagnant, still air. Unable to keep silent with his mind racing, Sonic continued to ask questions. "How'd you find this secret entrance?"

"Knuckles." Tori glanced briefly over her shoulder to the blue hedgehog who followed her obediently. "After Robotnik attacked Station Square and injured Miles, Knuckles returned to the area and led the evacuating survivors here. He said his race had always used these temples as refuge during crises, whether it was the result of war or nature." Tori could sense Sonic's mounting guilt and wanted to try and lighten the mood. "Miles managed to build a small airplane hangar near the top of the temple. It's sort of an emergency exit... or entrance for that matter! Sometimes I can't believe how imaginative Miles can be."

Sonic was in awe at the elaborate architecture sealed away inside the temple. The intricate carvings and murals remained untouched by man and nature, even after thousands of years. The ancient depictions and engravings were just as vivid and clear as the day they were initially created.

"Tori, how long did Knuckles... When did he go down?" Sonic couldn't get his mind off the death of his friend and rival.

Tori reluctantly answered the somber question. "He led a small resistance group against Robotnik in the heart of Station Square. But Robotnik had several weeks to accumulate his machines and weapons. Knuckles and his allies had only _one_ shot to fight back and they took it. When Robotnik attempted to attach his largest weapon to the Master Emerald, stolen from its pedestal on Angel Island, Knuckles put himself in the line of fire. His sacrifice stopped the machine in its tracks, but Knuckles himself... He didn't make it."

Sonic sighed heavily, the guilt weighing against his heart. "Who was with him?"

"Another hedgehog named Shadow stood by his side in battle. But he disappeared after that final attack and helping Knuckles to safety. A bat named Rouge helped Knuckles move the Master Emerald into the temple. She's the one who stayed with him after he collapsed, and didn't move from his side even after he... He... Passed away."

"Shadow... Rouge..." Sonic's guilt continued to mount. "Do you know about anyone else who would've sided with Knuckles? More friends, perhaps?"

Tori stopped at the bottom of the staircase and looked up the steps at Sonic. "Like who? Anyone in particular?"

"Silver, Blaze, Espio, Vector, Charmy, Mighty, Jet, Wave, Storm... maybe even Amy Rose..." A light from the large door opening in front of Tori temporarily blinded Sonic.

From inside the temple another familiar, yet more mature female voice responded. "Sonic? S-Sonic? Is that really you?!"

Sonic peered inside the room and spied a pink hedgehog staring back at him. "Amy?!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	5. Understanding the Future

From the bottom step of the winding, stone staircase Sonic stared with disbelief at the familiar pink hedgehog standing in the center of the largest chamber of the echidna temple. Amy Rose, of whom Sonic always saw as a good hearted hedgehog with an emotional immaturity that was off-putting, seemed to have changed into a confident, natural leader with a strength all her own.

Amy's pink quills had grown in length, giving her a longer 'hairstyle' that ran down her back and partially covered her face in the form of 'bangs'. She had two piercings in her right ear, she had switched out her red dress and boots for a more suitable pair of black cargo pants, a red sleeveless top, red hiking boots and white gloves. Like Tails she was also taller, now able to look Sonic more directly in the eyes.

"Amy..." Sonic couldn't believe his eyes, he had never seen Amy in such a manner. "Is that really... You?" He asked bewildered as he stepped away from the staircase into the larger interior chamber.

What was once a Badnik and trap infested chamber known as the 'Lost World', was now a shelter to those who chose to stand up to Dr. Robotnik and his patrolling roboticized squadrons. Small animals and locals from Willow Glen filled the chamber. Each local carefully took stock of the supplies and dwindling weaponry. The scard volunteers beagn whispering suspiciously to each other upon seeing Sonic's arrival.

"Sonic, where... Where have you been?!" Amy asked in a shaking tone. She was overcome with a sense of relief and hurt upon seeing Sonic again.

"Amy, I... I can't tell you what's happened to me... I don't know!"

Tori, who had followed Sonic into the chamber, put her hand on his arm as a sign of willingness to trust. "Amy, has there been any change in Robotnik's forces?"

"No, everything is the same." Amy never looked away from Sonic as she answered. "Cream returned a few minutes ago."

"Cream?" Sonic was glad to know that she too was one of the survivors, but the thought of such an innocent young girl, just as innocent as Tails, being forced to fight in this fruitless war wiped Sonic's fleeting moment of joy from his heart.

Amy wiped a small tear from her eye. "Tori, where did he come from?"

"I saw him walking out of Miles' workshop and brought him here."

"How is Miles? I haven't seen him lately..."

Tori changed the subject, not wanting to admit that she hadn't seen Miles either. "I think we should all talk. Let's go to the mural."

"Okay." Amy agreed to the meeting. She watched as Tori led Sonic to the safer route constructed from the main chamber to the isolated mural of Chaos and called out for her closest friend. "Cream, there's a meeting, let's go!"

Sonic stepped into the unnaturally calm and cool chamber of the temple. Now sitting on a makeshift pedestal in the center of the chamber was the powerful and enigmatic Master Emerald. The very emerald Knuckles had dedicated his life to protecting.

Looking past the Master Emerald Sonic stared at the mural of 'Perfect' Chaos depicted by the long gone ancient Echidna Tribe. Tikal and Knuckles' tribe. "It's been so long since I last set foot in here... This mural still gives me the chills."

Tori stared up at it, standing at Sonic's side. "I never understood this depiction. What does it mean?"

"It's a warning. If Chaos, the God of Destruction', were to get ahold of the Seven Chaos Emeralds, then Chaos would take this form: Perfect Chaos. And then Chaos would destroy the world, drowning it in rage and water."

"How awful."

"It was..."

"' _Was_ '? You mean, you've seen this!?"

"Once. Too long ago. I was able to use the positive energy from the Chaos Emeralds to neutralize Perfect Chaos and stop his reign of destruction before it spread beyond Station Square."

Amy's voice replied from the entryway to the chamber. "I remember that day, too." She stopped a few paces behind Sonic and Tori. "It was a terrible day, but in the end everything was set right."

Cream walked into the room and stopped next to Amy. "I was in the city the night before everything happened. Glad I left when I did!"

Sonic turned to look at Cream, but she too had changed since Sonic's mysterious disappearance. Just like both Tail and Amy, Cream was taller. She was no longer wearing her orange dress, but the same black cargo pants as Amy with an orange sleeveless top, orange boots and white gloves. Her already long ears were much longer and the small tuft of fur on her head was slightly longer.

At Cream's shoulder was a Chao. Sonic recognized it as 'Cheese', only because it was still wearing its red bowtie. Cheese had evolved into a Chaos Chao and was now protecting Cream more than she was protecting him.

"Cream... It's been so long..."

"Longer than you know." She stated shyly but matter-of-factly.

"Yeah..." Sonic shamefully agreed. "Can you tell me what's happened here? How did Robotnik take control so easily?"

Amy spoke up. "After you disappeared Robotnik planned a massive siege on Station Square. Miles and Knuckles tried to fight back, but..."

"I... I know what happened to Tails-Miles... And Knuckles."

Amy wiped away a second tear. "Rouge stayed with Knuckles until he... succumbed to his injuries. She... She returned to Willow Glen to give us the news. Afterward she left, saying that she was going to find a way to infiltrate Eggman's army and bring him down from the inside, but..."

"She never returned?" Sonic dreaded hearing the answer, something in his heart told him he already knew her fate.

Amy shook her head. "Shadow went looking for her. He felt as though he shared some of the responsibility for Knuckles... And he wanted to help us. When Rouge disappeared he took off without a word to find her. No one has seen him since."

Tori added her own piece to the story. "When the rebellion began to mount there were many volunteers who arrived, each one ready to fight back to avenge Knuckles and stop Robotnik, but they... They didn't stand a chance."

"Who?" Sonic felt his heart tightening with every painful detail given to him by his three allies. "Who else has... sacrificed themself?"

Cream sighed sadly. "My... My mother."

Sonic felt his own tears welling up. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry!" Vanilla had always been a very gentle, loving young rabbit. The fact that she was also gone only emphasized the level of destruction that Eggman had wrought upon the world.

"And Blaze." Cream continued, not wanting to linger on the memory of her late mother any more. "She... She arrived to help fight back, but she... Wasn't fast enough to avoid Eggman's attacks."

"No..." Sonic's emotional pain increased and his will to fight back strengthened.

Amy put her hand on Cream's shoulder in an attempt to comfort the young, brave heroine. "We lost Silver, too. He tried to save Blaze but..."

Cream rubbed her arm nervously. "After we constructed a monument in my mother, Blaze and Silver's memory in the highest chamber of the temple, Espio, Vector, Charmy and Big have been supplying us with every resource they can find. After we lost... our friends... they decided it'd be best to help the survivors rather than trying to fight back."

"They just... _gave up_?" Sonic couldn't believe it. "Team Chaotix would NEVER just give up!"

Amy resumed the story and defended their decision. "They felt like they didn't have a choice! We weren't going to tell them to keep fighting when they didn't feel like they could win." Amy's maturity and leader mentality shown through brilliantly through her impassioned words. "But... Miles still took it very hard and swore that he'd find you. He was certain that Robotnik... Eggman, had managed to kidnap you and was holding you hostage. I don't know what he found on his journey, but when he returned..."

Cream bowed her head sadly. "He was different."

Sonic clenched his fists angrily again, feeling his knuckles turn white from the tension running through his hands. "It's my fault... Everything is... I... I need to find a way to atone for my mistakes."

"Sonic," Amy calmly addressed the embittered blue hedgehog. "can you tell us where you've been all this time?"

"I... I don't know! I'm sorry!" He apologized again. "I want to tell you, but I don't have an answer!" Sonic blurted.

"I do." Miles abruptly spoke up as he casually stepped into the chamber. "Sonic... I know what happened."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	6. Journey into Chaos

Sonic looked at the serious natured fox as he stood idle in the doorway of the mural chamber. "T... Miles? You figured it out? You know what happened?"

Miles walked fully into the chamber with his head slightly bowed and his ears lowered. "I have a theory." He confirmed as he held out his yellow Chaos Emerald. "Sonic, tell me everything that happened after you left the workshop six years ago."

"Six years..." Sonic repeated as he held out his red Chaos Emerald, mirroring Miles' action. "Has it really been that long?"

Miles, Amy, Cream and Tori all exchanged brief, mournful glances before Miles spoke up. "Focus. Tell me what happened that night."

Sonic tightened his grip on his Chaos Emerald as he closed his eyes and remembered that fateful night. "After I left the workshop I started running for home. It started to storm and I didn't want to get caught in the rain. I started running faster than usual, and before I knew what was happening the Chaos Emerald let out some incredible force of energy. I went flying for a moment and I suddenly found myself laying on the ground in the jungle."

"And you were caught in the energy field." Miles confirmed. "The energy was strong enough to pull you through a ripple in time!"

"Meaning...?" Sonic wasn't following Miles' theory.

"Meaning that you didn't _disappear_ that night. You _traveled through time_." Miles answered confidently.

"No way!"

Amy was baffled by the prospect of time travel. "Hold on, if he can use the Chaos Emerald to time travel, then can't he just use it to go back to the night he vanished?"

"Hey, yeah!" Cream liked Amy's idea.

"Not likely." Miles continued in a gloomy tone. "He didn't have _control_ over the time ripple. He could've gone ahead for centuries into the future, or even centuries into the past."

Sonic couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Then... I'm stuck here?"

Miles shook his head. "I believe by combining your Chaos Emerald with the power of the Master Emerald you'll be able to gain control over the energy being released and you'll be able to then focus it on a specific event in time."

"Great! Let's try it!"

Sighing Miles shook his head again. "But... The Master Emerald syncs its power with ALL seven Chaos Emeralds. It won't work with just one."

"Then... how did I?"

"You said it was raining that night, that's why you kept running and kept increasing your speed, correct?"

"Yeah."

"It was also _storming_. The naturally occurring electrical field was enough to enhance the solo emerald's power just long enough for you to pass through the time ripple."

Sonic turned away from Miles to look at the Master Emerald behind him. "So... we need to collect all seven Chaos Emeralds, then I go back to my own timeline and prevent... _this_ era from ever happening."

"It's the only option we have." Miles somberly admitted. "We don't have the strength or speed to stop Eggman's army."

Amy spoke up again. "Well, we have two Chaos Emeralds already. Where are the other five?"

Tori joined Amy. "Good question!"

Miles took his electric pad and brought up an image of the regional map. Using a hologram he displayed the map in a 3-D view for everyone to see as it projected from the pad. "I've located the energy signatures from the remaining Chaos Emeralds. It won't be easy to do, but we have no choice, we must find them."

Sonic stared at the map. "Well, two of them are pretty close together." He pointed to an isolated oasis at the Eastern portion of the map. "I can get those two, no problem!"

"No, you can't." Miles dismissed indifferently. "One of the emeralds is on land, and the second is located in the water."

"Right..." Sonic realized that with his inability to swim he'd never be able to locate the Chaos Emerald by himself. "Tori, how'd you like to help me get that Emerald?"

"It'd be my pleasure!" Tori chimed in.

Miles returned his focus on the map. "There's one near the top of the snowy peak in the North. Cream, it'd be best for you to go since you can fly."

"Okay." Cream agreed and nodded at Cheese still hovering near her shoulder.

"Amy," Miles pinpointed the fourth Emerald. "the other is in West, just past the sand dunes. Think you can handle it?"

"Just try to stop me."

"Then that leaves the fifth Emerald for me. It's in the Southern mines."

"The mines?!" Amy was wisely concerned. "That's where the Renegade Soldier takes his prisoners!"

"I know... But we don't have a choice." He turned off the map display and held up the electronic pad. "I can use this to detect his location and stay out of sight."

Sonic approached the Master Emerald and stared at it with a sense of respect. Taking his red Chaos Emerald he placed the red gem on the edge of the Master Emerald's crudely constructed pedestal. "One down."

"Two." Miles followed suit, placing his yellow Chaos Emerald next to Sonic's. "Let's go."

The quintet exited the mural chamber and returned to the main interior chamber. Sonic stood alone at the doorway to the spiraling staircase while Miles quickly recalibrated his electronic pad to locate the Renegade Solider.

Amy, Cream and Tori took inventory of their stocked supplies.

"Amy?" Tori discreetly addressed the pink hedgehog. "You seem sad. Is there something on your mind?"

Amy picked up her worn out Piko-Piko hammer and gave Tori a passing glance. "I guess I just remember Sonic differently." She admitted blushing.

"What do you mean?"

"I... I never stopped believing that he'd return to us, but now that I see him... I don't know..."

Tori put her hand on Amy's shoulder. "You thought he left for a reason, not because of a freak accident. Now it seems like he's not as in control as you hoped."

"I guess..." Amy looked at the blue hedgehog in the distance. "I still have faith in him, but it's been shaken."

"He'll help us. You'll see! Miles told me all about his amazing adventures and achievements." Tori playfully nudged Amy and winked at Cream. "No hedgehog THAT stubborn would give up now!"

"Yeah, you're right!" Amy smiled. "And neither will we!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	7. To the East

Sonic stood alone in the doorway of the immense temple, his thoughts racing with the knowledge that he alone caused so much negative change to friends and the world he loves. _'I have to make this right. I know I can, but I can't do it alone. Not this time...'_

Tori could see Sonic standing alone in the doorway with a look of focus and sorrow. "Sonic?" She approached the wayward hero and put her hand on his shoulder. "You okay? It looks like you're in a trace."

"I'm fine." Sonic lied with a forced grin. "Just... thinking."

"About the past?"

"Yeah..." His grin faded.

"Well, don't. Think about the future instead!" She smiled gently.

"Yeah, good idea."

Miles approached the doorway with Amy and Cream following. "Are we ready to go?"

"Yeah, I'm ready." Sonic answered confidently.

"Good. I'll call in the Tornado III."

"A third Tornado, huh?" Sonic wasn't surprised that Miles had built another plane, but he was surprised it was only the third. "Bet this one goes REAL fast!"

Miles didn't respond to Sonic's enthusiasm. "It's fast enough."

Tori gave Sonic a reassuring grin. "Wait until you see it. You thought the first two planes were impressive, you'll be in absolute awe with this one."

The quintet walked up the spiraling staircase together. Miles led the way with Sonic and Tori walking side by side behind him. Amy, Cream and Cheese followed with their own supplies at the ready.

Amy's reinforced Piko-Piko hammer was smaller but much stronger and easier to swing. Cream had a leather satchel draped over her shoulder filled with an emergency first aid kit and a map.

As the group exited the temple a larger, green fighter jet began circling over the temple.

Miles pointed at the green jet. "The Tornado III, right on time."

The magnificent aircraft quickly and efficiently landed at the base of the temple in a swift, silent and smooth landing. The green plane was as sleek as the Tornado II, but it was wider with room for a total of six passengers. Refractive paneling gave the jet a stealth mode, while the power of Miles' duplicate Chaos Emerald, (the very same one he created after studying the components of the original emerald during the events of their second Adventure), gave the plane immense and clean burning energy.

"Wow, awesome!" Sonic admitted happily. "You'll never cease to amaze me."

Again, Miles ignored Sonic's comments. "We need to go. The Renegade Soldier may have spotted the plane circling the jungle."

"Right..."

Miles climbed up the side of the plane and into the cockpit. He slipped a pair of goggles on over his eyes. "Ready?"

Tori climbed up the side and took the seat directly behind Miles. Amy and Cream knew that at the moment Miles and Sonic being so close together may not have the best results. Amy followed Tori into the plane and sat next to the young otter. Sonic and Cream, along with Cheese, took the final seat in the rear of the plane.

Amy put her hand on Miles' shoulder. "We're ready!"

The plane quickly rolled forward and took to the sky. With the flick of a switch the refractive paneling engaged and the plane disappeared from sight as it flew through the clouds into the Eastern bright blue sky.

"East..." Sonic observed as the plane headed toward the oasis. "Guess Tori and I are first!"

Cream nodded politely as she gently patted Cheese's head as he sat on her lap. "I hope we can get the Chaos Emeralds soon!"

"I do, too." Sonic could see the worry in Cream's eyes. "Don't worry, we'll get everything set right. I promise!"

Cream wanted to believe Sonic, but just couldn't bring herself to do so. "Yeah..."

The plane quickly approached its destination: Lone Oasis.

"This is us!" Tori turned around in her seat to look at Sonic. "Ready?"

"You bet!" Sonic carefully put his foot up on the side of the plane. "You ever jump from this height before?"

"Not yet!" Tori followed suit, mirroring Sonic's pose.

"Hang on!" Sonic grabbed Tori's arm as the plane circled over the beautiful, untouched oasis below. "Now!"

Sonic jumped with Tori following closely at his side. As the duo dropped down to the ground Sonic grabbed Tori and held her in his arms as he landed perfectly on his feet, onto the relatively soft sand of the oasis.

"You okay?" Sonic asked with a sly smirk plastered on his face.

"I'm fine. You're the one who took the impact!" She commented as she gently climbed out of Sonic's grip and stood next to him.

"Nothing I can't handle."

The plane circled overhead one last time before it took off to the North. Sonic shielded his eyes as he watched the plane disappear from sight, he was only able to track it by clouds that departed as plane passed through.

"Which Chaos Emerald should we go for, first?" Tori asked anxiously.

"I think we should split up. I can handle the terrain no problem, water's your specialty! "I'll race ya'!" Sonic joked.

"Right." Tori walked over to the deep, cool water of the oasis. "See you on the other side!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	8. North & West

As the plane sped away from the oasis, heading North to the Crystal Snow Peak, Cream and Amy exchanged silent glances of concern. The young duo had learned to trust their instincts when it came to relying on anyone to act as a potential ally; and both were understandably nervous.

Tori, who had been a great help when Eggman's reign of terror began, wasn't as experienced at fighting as the rest of the group. She is a well-educated explorer of many ancient ruins, but she was never one to engage in combat. Her prosthetic leg, though beneficial, could also be a hindrance at times when the artificial limb malfunctioned.

And of course there was Sonic... The seemingly undefeatable hero lost all the trust and respect he had earned during that one fateful night six years ago.

The famous 'Blue Blur' had finally learned the truth, discovering the bizarre uncontrollable reason behind his mysterious disappearance, but sometimes the truth alone isn't enough to restore trust even between the closest of friends.

The air took on a steadily increasing chill as the plane approached the perpetually snow covered mountain range. Miles looked back over his shoulder and nodded once to Cream.

Cream nodded back and grabbed ahold of Cheese. As she prepared to leap she tightened the strap to her satchel around her shoulder and hugged Cheese tight, holding him against her chest. "Hold on!"

The petite, nimble rabbit leapt from the plane without fear and allowed herself to drop a few feet before using her long, broad ears to glide the rest of the way to the ground. She landed without any difficulty on a blanket of fresh, untouched snow. She waved her hand at the circling plane indicating that she was good to go.

Cream took in the seldom seen, breath taking sight that was the isolated peak. The constant snow made it nearly uninhabitable for the local fauna, while the cold kept tourists and explorers at bay. "Ready Cheese?" She asked the Chao in her arms.

Cheese hovered up from her grip using his small, unseen wings and nodded.

She took the small map from her satchel and unfolded it. "Okay, let's go!"

* * *

The plane circled once over the mountain range before heading West, to the heat stricken sand dunes.

Amy looked at Miles and could see the lingering pain in the young fox's eyes. "Miles, I know it's not easy for you to see... _him_... after so long," she was very careful with her words. "but we _need_ him. Now, more than ever."

"We've _always_ needed him." Miles uncharacteristically snarked. "He disappeared, everything went to hell, and now-"

"Miles!" Amy hated to hear her friend speak so angrily, to sound so broken. "Stop it! You can't think like that!"

"Like what? Like my best friend abandoned me? Like when I was hurt, and near death, the closest thing I had to a brother was never there for me?"

Amy bowed her head sadly. "You're not the only one who loved him."

Miles flinched at Amy's words and felt terrible for his bitter rant. "I know... I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It's not like I entirely trust him anymore, either."

"But... you're willing to try?"

"I'm willing to _believe_. Just as I believed in you when you, when you promised us that you'd find a way to stop Eggman. I've never stopped believing in that promise."

Miles sighed heavily, knowing that his anger could cloud his judgment and put everything, and everyone, at risk. "Thanks Amy..."

The pink hedgehog smiled gently and leaned back in her seat. "You don't have to thank me, but you're welcome all the same."

Miles took a small electronic device from a compartment in the cockpit. "Here." He handed the device to Amy. "Put this in your ear. It'll let us keep in contact with each other."

Amy took the communicator and put it in her ear. "But what about the others?"

"Tori and... Sonic... should be able to return to the temple on foot after they collect their Chaos Emeralds. Cream will be able to fly about half way to the temple by the time I circle back to pick you up. We can give her a lift and rendezvous with Tori and Sonic all together."

"Right!"

The seemingly eternal waves of copper sand that spilled out across the land came into view. The warm rays of the sun were very welcome after enduring the brisk chill of the Northern peak.

"Ready?" Miles asked as he began circling the all but forgotten Nova Dunes of the West.

"Ready!" Amy confirmed as she carefully rested her hammer over her shoulder.

"Go!"

With respectable grace Amy leapt from the side of the plane and landed on her feet on the peak of a soft sand dune. From the top of the dune Amy could make out the partially buried remains of an ancient society jutting out from the sand in the distance; like a rogue weed in a field of flowers.

Using two fingers Amy saluted the plane as Miles circled overhead.

Miles saw the signal and saluted her before taking off for his own destination in the South.

Amy took her hammer and swung it once. "Alright, it's my turn!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	9. South

Alone in the Tornado III, Miles allowed his mind to wander free and his thoughts to come into focus.

The painful memories of feeling helpless in the light of Sonic's sudden disappearance, the tragedy of losing Knuckles, Silver, Blaze, Vanilla, Shadow and Rouge, the phantom pain of the many scars that mar his back and the loss of his tail were overwhelming.

"Sonic... I know it's now your fault. But I just can't bring myself to forgive you..."

Miles stared forward, through the hazy clouds that transitioned into the escaping, billowing smog from the dangerous mines below.

"Black Ore Mines." Miles observed the labyrinthine and heavily guarded, smoky mines that stretched out across the land. "And somewhere inside is the Chaos Emerald."

Pressing a button on the control panel of the Tornado III, the plane engaged an auto-pilot mode. Sitting on the floor of the cockpit was a metallic belt, of which he fastened around his waist. He grabbed his electronic pad and held it against his chest for safe-keeping.

As the plane circled over an isolated, craggy peak of the mines, Miles leapt from the still flying plane.

Miles managed to tuck up into a little ball and roll onto the surface and avoid injuring himself in the process. "Just like old times..." Miles commented aloud as he turned on the electronic pad's map. "Okay... the Chaos Emerald is about 50 feet down." The map display also showed a green reticle indicating the emerald's location, while a red circling reticle indicated the Renegade Soldier's current location. "Hello there..."

From the small communicator in his ear, Miles heard Amy's voice speak up. " _Miles_? _Can you hear me_?"

"I hear you Amy. How's everything going?"

" _I managed to get across the dunes and I'm now inside the ruins. It looks like there used to be an ancient society of an armadillo clan here_."

"What about the Chaos Emerald?"

" _From what I can tell from the ruins, the Chaos Emerald is inside of an isolated chamber at the top of this temple_."

"Be careful of possible collapses. Who knows how long it's been since the temple's been restored."

" _Right! Keep me updated_."

"Will do."

Walking low along the ground, using the small cliff ledges jutting out from the mountains, Miles avoided the line of sight from the patrolling Badniks and the ever scanning eye of the Renegade Soldier who watched the skies.

Using the map Miles found an isolated and seldom tread pathway that lead into the mine. "Perfect."

Miles found the small entryway of the path and stepped inside. The tunnel was dark and filled with acrid fumes. Using the back of his hand Miles covered his nose and mouth to keep the pungent air from burning his lungs, but it didn't do anything to keep his eyes from watering up.

The clever fox clipped his electronic pad to his belt, using the glow of the display screen to the light the ground as he walked and used his opposite hand to guide himself along the dirty tunnel wall.

Stepping deeper into the mine Miles could hear the heavy machinery churning away and the sound of metal chipping into stone. As he rounded a corner he found himself looking down from a ledge into a large chamber where several captured locals were being forced into manual labor. Each enslaved miner had a heavy chain shackled to their ankles to prevent escape.

"That fiend..." Miles whispered angrily to himself. "I have to help them escape!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	10. Oasis Escape

The Lone Oasis was an expansive location that stretched through the warm land and through the cool water. Sonic ran through the labyrinthine and desiccated terrain while Tori swam through the claustrophobic obstacle course of the sea.

"Man..." Sonic thought to himself as he easily sidestepped downed pillars, trees and large pits on the craggy ground. "this place looks so much like the Aquatic Ruins!"

The memory of running through that relatively dangerous location with Tails at his side, during their first adventure together, made Sonic weep for the lost memories of brotherly bonds that he and Tails once shared.

"No..." Sonic composed himself and pushed the sorrow aside. "I need to focus. I can do this. After we all work together to set things right I'll find a way to make amends with Miles..." He skidded to a halt on the stone ground, a small cloud of dust and sand wafted up ad enshrouded the blue hedgehog in a gray mist. "I'll find a way to make amends with _Tails_."

Using his light speed dash ability Sonic burst into an aura of pale blue light as he raced through the remainder of the oasis. In a blur aged stone, pillars, trees, murals, inscriptions, pools of deep, blue water and green moss were rustled by Sonic's incredible speed.

The large, but few, scorpion like Badniks didn't stand a chance as Sonic easily sliced through their metal armor using only his speed.

Crossing over lengthy stone bridges and running for only the briefest of seconds over the top of the water, Sonic found himself deep inside the oasis, nearing a large chamber located at the heart of the isolated locale.

"Almost there!"

* * *

Tori, who was swimming nearly as fast as Sonic was running, easily slipped through the fallen stone pillars that narrowed the passages in the water.

Her keen eye as a skilled explorer gave her an accurate sense of her exact location and how much further she's have to swim before finding the chamber that housed the Chaos Emerald.

Thanks to her unexpected bond with Miles, the clever fox was able to create for her a more advanced and adaptable prosthetic leg. His kindness and resourcefulness was all the proof she needed to know that Miles was devoted to keeping him promise. Devoted to finding a way to stop Dr. Robotnik and restore peace to the world. And now, at this very moment, she swore she'd remain just as devoted and succeed in collecting the Chaos Emerald.

Breaching the surface of he water to take in a breath of relatively fresh air, Tori admired the long forgotten architectural beauty that was the Lone Oasis. Small glow worms that were living on the ceiling of the watery passage way filled the internal chambers in an ethereal blue glow.

Fortunately for Tori the glowworms were the only other life form she encountered in the water.

"So beautiful... so mysterious." Tori commented as her eye was drawn to the glow above. "Hm, what's this?"

Swimming toward a large, mostly intact wall she spied a mural. "This looks like the same mural from the echidna temple. I wonder if the ancient echidna tribes dwelled here as well."

A small rumble from above shook small stones loose from the ceiling. The pebbles rained down around Tori, splashing into the blue water. "Better keep moving."

Taking a deep breath Tori dove back down under the surface of the water and resumed her journey through the oasis. It was difficult to see in the dark water, but not impossible. Periodically a beam of bright sunlight would shine through the compromised stone ceiling, basking the waters in a bright glow of yellow light in the form of pure rays.

As Tori neared the central location of the oasis she found herself face to face with a large stone wall that stretched from the top of the underwater pathway to the sandy bottom of the water. The water level was at its peak, there was only one way to go: up. Through a narrow, round tunnel.

' _Hm_...' Tori thought to herself. ' _There must be a way past this wall. That tunnel looks like a one way exit_!'

Using her knowledge and experience as an explorer Tori felt along the stone wall for a secret switch or doorway. Her hand pressed against a small stone that was barely visible and jutting out from the otherwise perfectly smooth wall.

A small doorway opened up, slowly. Through the small opening Tori could see an ancient, water worn staircase and at the top of the staircase a large beam of sunlight. ' _Bingo_!'

* * *

Sonic reached the heart of the oasis. He too found himself standing face to face with a large stone wall.

"Dead end?"

Sonic paced back and forth in front of the wall, carefully examining the lone obstruction.

"I wonder..." Just as Tori had done below, Sonic began checking the wall for a secret entrance. "Let's see..."

The surrounding walls were decorated with more inscriptions by the long deceased echidna clan. "The Echidna Tribe used to be here. C'mon Knuckles... help me out here, buddy!"

Sonic stared at the blank wall with confusion. "Why would all the walls, except for this one, have inscriptions? Unless..."

Running his hands along the smooth surface of the wall Sonic found a similar stone jutting out of place. "Ah-ha!"

With the press of the stone the wall opened up, revealing a small passageway. Sonic could see a staircase leading up into a hidden chamber.

"That's what I'm talking about!"

Sonic ran up the stairs and found himself standing in a beautifully carved chamber. A chamber that had remained untouched by the hands of mortals or nature for almost a thousand years!

"Incredible..." In the center of the chamber was a modestly sized pedestal with a staircase leading to the top. The pedestal was surrounded by a small moat filled the naturally flowing water of the oasis. Behind the pedestal was a well that connected that chamber to its underwater counterpart below.

"Looks kind of like the pedestal that housed the Master Emerald back on Angel Island." He observed respectfully.

Sonic reached the top of the stairs and found the purple Chaos Emerald. He carefully put his hand on the priceless gem and picked it up. "I'm glad the echidnas knew how important the Chaos Emeralds are. Three down, four to go."

"Make that three to go!" Tori emerged from the well behind the pedestal with the green emerald in her hand.

"Tori!" Sonic saw his new ally climb out of the well. "Nice timing!"

She walked to the foot of the stairs of the pedestal as Sonic walked down. "We have both emeralds, we should get back to the temple, fast!"

"I couldn't agree more."

From the outside of the chamber a deafening explosion shook the entire oasis. "What the...?"

Sonic pointed to the source of the explosion. A large blast of energy had struck the chamber, creating a massive hole in the ceiling and wall. On the other side of the hole, hovering in midair was the Renegade solider.

"It's him..." Sonic practically growled. "We don't have time for you!"

The Renegade Solider fired again. Sonic easily dodged the laser blast by jumping to the side, scooping Tori up in his arms at the same time.

"Sonic?!" Tori wrapped her arms around his neck in fear. "What do we do?!"

"What else? Run!"

Tori tightened her grip around Sonic's neck and her grip on the two invaluable Chaos Emeralds. "Okay... You lead!"

Once again relying on his light speed dash, Sonic bolted from the chamber with Tori and the Chaos Emeralds in tow. The Renegade Solider attempted to pursue but Sonic was far too fast!

Easily dashing through the stone passages, over the water, on top of the water and over the downed pillars, Sonic was able to easily dodge the Renegade Soldier.

"Piece of cake..." Sonic commented as he came to a sudden stop near the entrance of the oasis. "Now where do we go?"

"Sonic!" Tori caught sight of an approaching scorpion Badnik squadron, sneaking up behind Sonic.

"I got it!" Sonic leapt up into the air and put Tori down on a pillar. "Wait here!"

Tori watched as Sonic easily dispatched the small goon squad with fast and precise jumps.

"See? No problem?" Sonic grinned as he stood in the middle of smoldering metallic pile of crushed enemies.

"Wow, that was impressive..." Tori admitted.

Before Sonic had a chance to say anything else a burst of red energy shot down from behind Tori and struck Sonic in the chest, knocking the blue hedgehog to the ground; unconscious.

"Sonic?!" Tori jumped down from the pillar and kneeled next to the downed hero. "Sonic! Wake up!"

She patted the sides of Sonic's face but couldn't get a response. That's when she noticed the raw, bleeding wound on Sonic's chest. "Oh no..."

'DO NOT RUN.' The Renegade Solider hovered from his hiding position behind the pillar. 'DO NOT RESIST.'

Tori wrapped Sonic's limp arm around her shoulders as she eyed the deep water only a few feet from where the duo was sitting. "You didn't say _anything_ about swimming!" She quickly remarked as she grabbed onto Sonic and ran to the edge of the pool. She dove into the water.

The Renegade Soldier opened fire but missed every shot as the escaping prisoners disappeared from sight into the water.

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	11. Crystal Peak Mountain

Cream and Cheese carefully trekked up the snowy Crystal Peak Mountain in search of the hidden Chaos Emerald. The wind billowed and swirled small snow flakes through the air, chilling the two brave explorers as they ascended the ice coated terrain. Each breath that escaped their cold lips disappeared in a foggy cloud that seemed to grow larger as they climbed higher.

Rubbing her cold paws together Cream paused on the edge of a tall cliff and looked down the side of the mountain. "Wow Cheese, we're so high up! I'm glad we can fly, I'd hate to fall from way up here!"

Cheese, the ever loyal Chao, hovered next to Cream's shoulder and nodded in agreement as he took in the impressive sight for himself.

Taking the map from her satchel Cream checked their current location. "I think we're about here..." she pointed to a spot on the map. "And the cave is about... here!" she rested her finger on their nearby destination. "Looks like we can cut our time in half if we fly, but with the wind picking up I'm worried we might get blown off track."

Cheese nodded and let out a confident chirp.

"Yeah, you're right. We have to try! Everyone is counting on us!"

Cream folded the map back up and slid it into her satchel before grabbing ahold of Cheese. Using her long, broad ears Cream took to the sky and easily flew toward their isolated destination.

The wind speed intensified making it difficult for Cream to fly in a straight trajectory. The wind also brought a bone shivering cold that stung at her eyes and made her fingers go numb. Using one hand to shield her eyes from the brutal weather Cream spotted the opening to a cave on the side of the mountain, partially concealed behind a large round, dark boulder. "There!"

The young rabbit eagerly landed on the snow covered surface and jogged into the cave.

Fortunately for the chilled duo the cave itself was unexpectedly warm and inviting. "Much better..." Cream commented as she allow the warmth to wash over her.

The interior of the cave was wide and spacious. The floor was littered with naturally flowing hot springs which heated the cave, and allowed small white flowers and green vines to grow along the walls.

"Wow..." Cream admired the unknown beauty of the cave as she rubbed her paws up and down her arms to get warmer. "It's so pretty!"

Cheese hovered over to the far wall and examined a semi-faded mural. He let out a small chirp to get Cream's attention.

"What did you find Cheese? A clue?" She stood next to the Chao and looked at the wall. "Hey! It looks like a tribe of foxes used to live here!"

The wall was adorned with a large and worn mural depicting a group of foxes guarding what appeared to be a Chaos Emerald.

"Wow, I guess even thousands of years ago the inhabitants knew to keep the Chaos Emeralds safe."

Cheese let out another chirp in agreement.

"C'mon. We have to find that emerald and get back to the Mystic Ruins!"

Stepping deeper into the cave Cream found a winding maze of multiple tunnels and passages. Age and weather had caused most of the passageways to crumble and erode, leaving only one path safe enough to walk. Ever careful and patient, Cream carefully set her foot on the pathway to test her weight. At the first sign of possible tunnel or bridge collapse she was ready to fly up and away from danger.

"It's holding my weight Cheese." Cream replied with a less than confident tone. "I think I can make it."

Step by step Cream carefully crossed the narrow pathway. With each careful step she found herself walking deeper and higher into the cave. Below the ascending pathway was a large pool of water with ice floes resting on top. The hot springs resided exclusively in the entrance of the cave, making the rest of the cave just as cold as the mountain's exterior.

A small stone from the pathway suddenly broke free from beneath her foot and fell into the icy water below. "I'd hate to fall in there!" Cream commented and shuddered at the thought of being caught in such a cold body of water.

Finally on the other side of the pathway, Cream let out a sigh of relief. The pathway had led her to a long since abandoned and magnificent chamber.

The chamber itself was as expansive as the entrance to the cave but had no hot springs and no local flora growing. In the center of the chamber was a large pedestal, one that had a similar design to the pedestal that housed the Master Emerald, with the exception of being much smaller and adorned with different inscriptions.

Small pillars encircled the pedestal, each pillar representing one of the seven Chaos Emeralds and each pillar depicting a fox holding the emeralds aloft.

Unwilling to risk triggering some kind of ancient booby trap or causing the chamber to collapse, Cream chose to fly to the top of pedestal where she found the bright, sky blue Chaos Emerald resting. Gently putting her paw over the ethereal gem Cream lifted it up and away from the pedestal. She looked around the chamber to see if she had accidentally set off a trap or was about to be ambushed by some hidden guardian, but nothing happened.

Relieved she flew down the pedestal and landed next to Cheese. "Whew... Looks like we made it!" She tucked the priceless gem into her satchel. "I guess it's too cold for Eggman to send any of his goons up here!"

Cheese nodded in agreement.

"Now, we just have to get back out of the cave and to the Mystic Ruins."

Cheese nodded again as he followed Cream back out of the chamber. This time Cream decided to fly across the pathway, just to make sure the dilapidated path didn't crumbled any further.

At the entrance of the cave Cream took a moment to warm up and to take in a deep, calming breath.

"We have the Chaos Emerald and we haven't run into any problems. But we shouldn't let our guard down. We still have to get back down the mountain and back to the temple. If anything goes wrong between now and then, well... I don't want to think about it."

Cheese let out a sad chirp and nodded.

"Let's go, we need to keep moving!" Cream waved for Cheese to follow as she jogged out of the cave. Taking a running leap Cream jumped off the edge of a small cliff and headed down the mountain. Cheese followed suit and hovered after Cream, keeping pace with his good friend.

The blizzard was beginning to increase with strength but the gentle rabbit wouldn't be deterred by a little snow. Not when no many of her friends were counting on her to succeed!

Five Chaos Emeralds have been collected. Only two more to go.

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	12. Nova Dunes

With a strong swing from her Piko-Piko hammer, Amy Rose easily smashed a large, eroded boulder out of her pathway as she continued to explore the ruins of the long abandoned Nova Dunes. The impact of the hammer let loose a loud echo that resonated eerily through the empty interior chamber of the ruins.

It took her several long, physically exhausting minutes to clear a path through the time worn temple. Many of the walls had collapsed under their own weight, causing the ceiling above to cave in and block off multiple pathways. Large stone support columns had been felled by time and now laid strewn across the floor or wedged in doorways like uprooted trees. The uneven and warped floors made even the basic task of walking a cumbersome chore.

"Whew..." Amy sighed as she used the back of her hand to wipe a small amount of sweat from her brow. "This is hard work. At least it's cooler in the ruins than it is out on the sandy dunes."

As she stepped deeper into the chamber she found the lighting scarce, making it difficult to see the environment in front of her. The limited sight was also making it a struggle for her to maneuver over the decaying stone pillars, fallen columns, large pits in the floor and gaps in the walls.

The walls, though heavily damaged and eroded, still had visible depictions and inscriptions of the now extinct armadillo tribe that had once inhabited the dunes and the single remaining temple.

On the far wall of the central chamber was a massive mural depicting the armadillo tribe taking a Chaos Emerald from the echidna tribe, with the fox tribe on the battlefield as well. The three tribes were attempting to take control of the seven Chaos Emeralds and, in the end, the seven Emeralds were separated from one another; and kept hidden away by the three separate tribes.

The mural also depicted three separate powerful creatures taking control of the seven Chaos Emeralds and becoming invincible deities of destruction. One of the three creatures Amy recognized as Chaos the God of Destruction. Like the mural in the temple of the echidna tribe and in Station Square all those years ago, Chaos had become Perfect Chaos and was using large waves from an over-flooding ocean to destroy many locations.

Also depicted by the mural was a being of sand taking the form of a massive golem like monster and a being of fire taking the form of a towering blaze in the shape of a dragon.

"Wow, the Chaos Emeralds have been used as a weapon for centuries! Maybe we shouldn't use them. Maybe we should keep them hidden and protect them just like these tribes in the past..."

The ceiling above began to crumble from the erosion of the howling winds and blistering heat of the sun. Sand and small stones fell down and around the pink hedgehog. Looking up Amy watched as a single ray of sunlight crept through a widening crack and shined on the mural. As the light exposed more images depicted on the wall she saw three more beings, each much smaller than the three monsters, absorbing the power of the Chaos Emeralds and working together to stop the monsters as a team. The three smaller beings were each a member of the respective tribes below.

"Wait a minute..." Amy stepped closer to the mural and gently brushed away a layer of dust and sand with her hand. "The tribe that lived here wasn't a tribe of armadillos, they were _hedgehogs_!"

It was then Amy understood what the mural was depicting. "Wait... The tribes weren't at war with each other and fighting over the Chaos Emeralds... They were fighting TOGETHER. They were trying to STOP the Chaos Emeralds! The tribes separated the Chaos Emeralds to ensure that these monsters would never rise again..." She closed her eyes, dreading the possibility of the world being lost in a single act of destruction.

"Miles, can you hear me?" Amy tried to make contact with Miles through the earpiece communicator, but all she received in response was static. "Miles, can you hear me?" She asked again. "Must be out of range... The mines! Of course, Miles is too deep _in the mines_!"

Tightening her grip on her hammer Amy left the mural behind as she ran through the rest of the ruins, heading to the heart of the temple. "I have to warn Miles and Sonic! If Eggman was able to unleash Perfect Chaos once, he could do it again! And this time he might not be alone!"

Using her finely developed skills at running and jumping, as well as her impressive skill with the hammer, Amy was able to easily maneuver her way through the decrepit ruins and find the chamber that house the Chaos Emerald within. Wisely Amy entered the chamber at a slow, calm pace.

A massive pedestal adorned with inscriptions of a dead language and small murals lines the base. The steep stone staircase led to the top where the dark blue Chaos Emerald rested. Amy approached the powerful gem and stared into its ethereal beauty. "How can something so beautiful create something so ugly?"

She picked up the Chaos Emerald and frowned. "I hope we're not too late to stop Eggman..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	13. Black Ore Mines

In the midst of the depths of the Black Ore Mines Miles watched with a angered grimace as the innocent captives were forced to dig for the precious ores and minerals used to power Eggman's oppressive machinery and Badnik squadrons.

"I have to do something." Miles said to himself as he crouched in the shadows on the ledge that overlooked the core mining operation. "But I need to get the Chaos Emerald."

He closed his eyes as he mentally devised a plan of action. The pungent fumes from the heavy machinery and the naturally toxic chemicals existing in the mine stung at his eyes and nostrils. Using his arm her covered his nose and mouth, while his ears picked up the high pitched squeaking of rusty cart wheels turning on an aged, dirty tracks.

"Wait a minute..." Keeping low Miles crept along the ledge and found the source of the squeaking. Below on the mass of winding tracks sat two very large mine carts. The captives were being forced to unload painfully heavy rocks and boulders. Each massive stone was being put into an enormous rock crushing machine. The machine itself was composed of strong metal and had massive gears churning together to crush the rocks.

Miles eye was drawn to the large mine carts. Large enough to carry all the captives to safety and strong enough to withstand any attack by a Badnik squadron. "If I can free the captives they can use those carts to escape..."

The electronic pad clipped to his belt started buzzing as an alert came in. Looking at the screen Miles could see the red reticle identifying the current location of the Renegade Soldier. He had returned to the mines.

"There you are... But where have you been?"

On cue the Renegade Soldier flew through the mines, over the mine carts and into the chamber where the captives were still slaving away. The armor clad foe landed with a heavy thud on the ground and scanned the helpless masses.

From the shadows Eggman himself appeared. The diabolical doctor was wearing red armor over his body and high powered goggles over his eyes. A blood red cape was attached to the armor, it billowed with the escaping smoke that was poured from the machinery and ground.

"Solider, report." Eggman demanded as he crossed his arms.

'REPORTING, SIR.' The Renegade Soldier's voice was a garbled electronic voice that lacked any personality or even gender. 'RUMORED SIGHTING OF SONIC THE HEDGEHOG HAS BEEN CONFIRMED.'

"What?" Eggman sounded more confused than upset.

Miles listened with great interest at the conversation that echoed through the mine.

"Where is he now?"

'LAST KNOWN LOCATION: LONE OASIS.'

"Was he alone?"

'NEGATIVE.'

"Interesting..." Eggman put a hand to his chin in an inquisitive manner. "Who was with Sonic? Was it that meddlesome fox or that pink hedgehog?"

'NEGATIVE. IDENTITY CONFIRMED AS TORRENT THE OTTER.'

"Ah, yes. Sweet little 'Tori'. She isn't a threat. But that crafty blue hedgehog is!" Eggman angrily scoffed at the idea of Sonic being an acting force again. "Tell me Soldier, what was Sonic's condition?"

'UNKNOWN. FINAL READINGS INDICATE SEVERE PHYSICAL TRAUMA.'

Miles felt his heart skip a beat. "Trauma... Sonic is hurt?"

Eggman chuckled menacingly. "Good. If he's been injured it's sure to slow him down. What is the nature of his injury? I want a cause."

'SINGLE ENERGY BLAST TO THE CHEST.'

Eggman laughed wickedly. "Excellent! There's no way that blue pest can interfere with my plans. I'm so very close to finishing my final phase of my world domination. If anything were to go wrong now..." Eggman cleared his throat. "Solider you have done well. Resume patrolling the Lone Oasis, I want Sonic in my custody: Dead or Alive."

'UNDERSTOOD.' The Renegade Solider took flight once more and sped off through the air and out of the mines through a large hole in the ceiling.

Eggman himself gave once last vile glance at his captives and sneered vilely. He turned on his heels, his cape twisting around his body like a red curtain closing on the final act as he vanished back into the shadows from when he came.

Miles clenched his hands in fists as he laid his ears back and glared at Eggman as he disappeared from sight. "There's no way I'm going to sit back and let you take over the world. If Sonic is hurt then I'll fight for the both of us. I made a promise..."

Looking back down at the electronic pad Miles watched as the red reticle disappeared off the display and the green reticle brightened. "The Chaos Emerald is close."

Sticking to the shadows and using the untouched ledges of the mines, Miles was able to easily avoid detection by the patrolling Badniks and even the defenseless captives bound in chain far below. It caused his heart to ache knowing that he had to ignore the prisoners, his friends and allies, but he kept reminding himself that he would soon return to free them at long last.

Using the electronic pad as his guide Miles found himself at the edge of the ledge, standing at the peak of a cliff that hung over a seemingly bottomless pit into the dark, smoky cavernous mine. Looking out from his perch he could see a very large and very well protected chamber. The green reticle was focused on a single point inside that chamber.

"The Chaos Emerald." Miles clipped the electronic pad to his belt again. "I need to be smart about this. I can't give away my position, I have to get in and get out without being seen or heard."

Dozens of tank-like Badniks patrolled the ground, blocking the main entrance into the chamber. Above the entrance many odd boulders jutted out from the wall, much like a natural staircase. At the top of the staircase was a very large hole in the wall, one that led from the exterior of the chamber to its unseen interior.

Miles shook his head. "I would've been able to fly over if I..." His single tail dropped down and onto the dirty ground. "If I hadn't been... crippled."

Standing tall and proud Miles looked at the hole in the wall and clenched his fists again. "I don't need to fly. I can jump it. If I can make it _this_ far, then I keep going, no problem!"

Taking a few paces back from the ledge, Miles began a running start as fast as he could. As he reached the edge of the cliff he put all his strength and energy into his legs as he leapt the expansive chasm, he hands outstretched ready to grab ahold of the stone surface as soon as he made contact. With an uncomfortable thump Miles felt his body slam against the stone wall, his hands instinctively grabbing at the stones seeking a hold.

The impact against the wall caused several smaller stones to fall loose and and sprinkle down around the Badniks.

The Badniks froze in their places and scanned the area with green lights, looking for any sign of intrusion or disturbance. Miles held as still as possible against the wall, not moving and barely breathing.

Satisfied that there was nothing amiss the Badnik's resumed their patrol.

Miles let out a quiet, soft sigh as he climbed up the staircase and into to the hole. Peering through he could see an ancient pedestal covered in elaborate markings and inscriptions at the center of the chamber. At the peak of the pedestal was the seventh and final Chaos Emerald, emblazoned in a silver colored hue.

There was no Badnik guard in sight, but Miles still wisely exercised caution. Using the wall he climbed down slowly, quietly and walked in silence across the room to the pedestal. Walking up the steps that led to the top of the pedestal Miles admired the ancient inscriptions that escaped the tests of time. Echidnas, foxes and hedgehogs were depicted as guardians of the Chaos Emeralds.

"Weird, I though the echidna tribe was the sole guardian of the Chaos Emeralds..." He thought to himself.

Reaching the top of the pedestal Miles picked up the shining Chaos Emerald and held it high in the air. "Gotcha'!"

Just as quietly and carefully as he entered the chamber, Miles retraced his steps to exit in the same stealthy manner. Jumping back to the cliff, however, wasn't an option. He didn't have the proper distance to get a running jump.

"Guess I'm walking..." Miles realized.

Getting a grip on the stone wall he pressed his body against the surface and slowly walked side ways following the rock face to its outermost edge. The rock face continued out from the exterior of the chamber to the wall that connected to the cliff and ledge that Miles had tread before. The threat of falling or being spotted kept Miles on guard but he wasn't afraid.

Finally reaching the ledge he carefully jumped from the wall and pulled himself up. He ducked into the shadows and took in a deep breath to steady himself. He listened to the ambiance of the mine. He could hear the sound of stone being chipping, rocks being dropped, the mine carts squeaking, the grinding gears of the high powered machines and Badniks, but he did not hear any alarm sound off. He was in the clear.

"Now... to save my friends."

Miles returned to the mine cart loading area and looked down at the exhausted captives. A supply of tools and small weapons lined the walls, which was all the inspiration Miles needed.

Using his brain instead of brawn, Miles climbed down to the lower level with the mine carts and grabbed a massive wrench used to make repairs. He snuck up behind the lone guard Badnik and smashed its metal head. The sound of the attack was muffled by the very machine that the Badnik was set to protect.

The captives, a group of Mystic Ruins locals; rabbits, squirrels and weasels, all froze in place when they saw their oppressive guard nothing more than a smoldering pile of scrap metal.

Miles hopped down and grinned at the captives as he held up a finger to shush them. "I'm here to help you." He whispered. "I'll free you from your chains."

Through tearful smiles the captives thanked Miles as they fell to the ground in exhaustion. Working quickly Miles used the wrench to break the locks on the chains that held them in place. "Now..." He held out his hand to help the captives back to their feet. "climb inside the mine carts and leave everything to me."

Grabbing a small laser cannon from the weaponry, Miles tossed it into one of the carts for possible protection. "Just in case." He winked.

As Miles climbed back up the ledge, with the large wrench in hand, the freed captives climbed into the mine carts. One captive called up to Miles. "Thank you!"

Miles flinched at the kind words and blushed a little. "Don't thank me just yet!" He replied with the same confident grin that he had seen Sonic flash so many times before. "We have one more stop before we're out of here!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	14. Escape!

With the captives from the mine cart chamber freed and safely hidden away in the carts, Miles made his way to the larger chamber where the remaining captives were forced to dig for and harvest the actual ores and minerals buried deep in the Earth.

Sticking to the upper ledges of the mine Miles was able to avoid detection and observe the layout of the chamber. "Let's see... Three guards, all armed and fourteen captives." Thinking quickly he remembered the wrench in his hand. "If I'm fast enough I can take them all out and unlock the chains before reinforcements arrive!"

Dropping down from the ledge, using the dark and abundant shadows as his cover, Miles crept up behind one of the Badnik guards who had its back to the mining chamber. By jamming the wrench into the Badnik's power supply located on its back, Miles was able to disrupt the flow of power and disable it quickly.

The sound of the Badnik's motor sputtering and stopping suddenly caught the attention of the two remaining guards. 'ALERT. ALERT.'

"Get down!" Miles yelled at the captives as he climbed up on top of the downed Badnik, unintimidated by the machines.

The captives, more squirrels, rabbits and flickies, all did as they were instructed. They dropped to the floor of the mine and laid on their bellies with their hands over their heads in a protective manner. They watched in a mix of joy and horror as Miles proceeded to fight back on their behalf.

Leaping from his perch on top of the destroyed Badnik, Miles avoided the laser blasts from the two still operational Badniks who were programmed to stop any and all intruders. With the wrench still in hand Miles used it as his only weapon. Swinging the tool like a sword Miles smashed one Badnik's cannon before easily ducking under the second's bombardment of shots and smashing its body, disabling its primary functions.

Returning his attention to the unarmed Badnik Miles used the wrench to smash its head, shutting it down permanently.

Miles stood in the center of the chamber, the black smoke from the destroyed robots swirling around him. "Is everyone alright?"

The captives slowly returned to their feet and nodded at their fox rescuer.

"Good. Let's get those chains off of you." Miles used the wrench to open the locks on the chains, one by one. "Listen, I already freed your friends in the next chamber. Once I get these chains loose join them in the mine carts. We're getting out of here. Together."

As each lock was opened the newly freed and grateful captives made their way to the mine carts. It wasn't easy but all of the captives were able to fit inside the two mine carts, anxious to escape the mine.

Miles followed the last captive to the mine cart and helped him climb inside the cart. "Is everyone accounted for?"

One of the captives, a red squirrel spoke up quietly. "Not everyone."

"Who's missing?" Miles asked as he prepared the two mine carts for the rapid exit.

"Well... I'm not so much sure if he's really missing or... gone."

"Who?"

"A black hedgehog with red stripes and golden eyes."

"Shadow..." Miles wasn't expecting this answer and he felt a knot form in his stomach. "Shadow was _here_?"

"A long time ago. He tried to fight back against the Renegade Soldier. He kept saying something like... 'This isn't who you are. Stop now.' I didn't understand why but I remember him talking to the soldier."

"Strange..." Miles pushed one of the carts to get it in motion. "Do you know where he might be, now?"

"No. After he fought against the Renegade Soldier, and lost... he was dragged away by Eggman's elite guard and we never saw him again. That was... almost five years ago. I think."

"Sounds about right..." Miles commented sadly as he checked the second mine cart. "Okay, hold tight. These carts are going to leaving the mine at top speed and they aren't going to stop! Ready?"

The captives all prepared for the hasty exit as best as they could. Some held onto the edge of the cart while the others held onto each other.

As the carts began rolling down the track Miles heard a robotic voice in the distance speak up. ' _Uh-oh_...' He thought to himself. ' _Better create a distraction_.'

Running ahead of the carts Miles used the wrench the break as many of the high powered machines as possible. The loud noise covered up the sound of the mine carts' squeaking wheels and the thick smoke obscured the sight of anyone who would try to look inside the chamber.

The carts raced through the smoke and out of the mines, into daylight. Miles used his electronic pad as a light and followed the carts as quickly as he could. Just as he exited the main chamber he heard a squadron of Badnik's enter to investigate the disturbance. "No you don't!"

Using the wrench one last time, Miles drove the tool into the edge of the tunnel and disturbed the delicate foundation. The tunnel began collapsing in on itself, causing large borders and broken support beams to fall loose and block the entry way from the mine to the tunnel. Cutting off the Badnik's route allowing for an uninterrupted escape.

"Move, move, move!" Miles called out for the escaping captives ahead of him and to encourage himself to keep running.

Diving out of the collapsing tunnel, Miles found himself laying on the ground just behind the stopped mine carts. He coughed as the smoky dust cloud from the mine collapse filled the air. Brushing the dirt from his fur he stood up and looked at the shaken captives, all of whom were waiting for his next move.

"Is everyone okay?" He asked between coughs.

The captives all nodded.

"Okay, we need to get you to safety." Using his electronic pad Miles brought up a map. With a few adjustments he created a pathway leading from the mine to the isolated little village of Willow Glen. "I know you're all tired and I know you don't feel like you can walk another step, but you have to make it to this spot before dark."

Miles handed the electronic pad to the red squirrel who had told him about Shadow. The squirrel took the item and gave Miles a sad look. "You're not coming with us?"

"I can't. I have something else I need to take care of. Something very important."

"Well, you saved us once, so I guess we can trust your map." The captives smiled warmly at their hero.

"Thanks." Miles was genuinely happy and appreciative of their trust. "Please, be careful. Stay low: stick the shadows and use the trees as cover. When you arrive at the village just say you're friends of Miles and they'll take care of you."

"Right. Thanks!"

Miles watched as the freed captives headed off toward Willow Glen, disappearing from sight behind the boulders and over the hills leading back into the dense jungle. "Stay safe." He softly uttered to the escapees, hoping they'd make it on their own.

Taking the low route from the mine, Miles checked on the silver Chaos Emerald that was still in his possession. "Mission accomplished." He used the ear piece communicator to make contact with Amy. "Amy, can you hear me?"

" _Miles! There you_ _are_!" Amy's relieved voice responded from the other end of the line. " _I've been trying to contact you for almost twenty minutes_!"

"Sorry, the mine was full of natural mineral deposits that blocked our signal. I have the Chaos Emerald and I managed to free the captives in the mine. How're things on your end?"

" _You freed the captives? Nice work! I got the Chaos Emerald from the Nova Dunes without any problem, and I discovered an interesting mural_ -"

"Sh! Hold it Amy." Miles suddenly ducked down, taking shelter beneath a large rock jutting out from the mountain. "The Renegade Soldier has returned to the mine." Miles whispered. It was then he remembered that the soldier claimed that Sonic had been injured at the Lone Oasis. "Amy, we have to move. I'll call in the Tornado III and swing by to pick you up. Stay safe."

" _Okay. I'll be waiting_!"

Miles pushed up the cuff of his thick glove and exposed a small electronic watch on his wrist. It was a miniature version of his electronic pad, unfortunately it wasn't as powerful as its larger counterpart. "Glad I always keep a back-up on hand." Pressing a small button on the side of the watch's display, he called in the Tornado III.

The stealthy green plane circled overhead silently. Climbing up the rock face until he was almost level with the plane, Miles timed his jump perfectly and landed in the plane's cockpit. Turning off the auto-pilot Miles began flying East to the Nova Dunes where Amy was waiting.

The plane easily eluded the sight of the Renegade Soldier, allowing Miles to slip away unnoticed.

"I hope we didn't waste our time collecting these Chaos Emeralds." Miles commented as the plane flew over the ruined landscapes that were filled with Eggman's squadrons and machines. "If Knuckles AND Shadow were taken down... then maybe all of this... it was for nothing!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	15. Time to Re-Group

Flying as quickly as he could, Miles piloted the Tornado III to the East, heading for the Nova Dunes.

Escaping the Black Ore Mine was more work than he had anticipated but he managed to pull off the feat with little difficulty and without the Renegade Soldier in pursuit. Initially he infiltrated the mine to collect the Chaos Emerald contained within, but he couldn't leave the mine without freeing Eggman's captives who forced to work in the mine. Unfortunately this good deed would go unpunished.

Giving his electronic pad to the escapees so they could find the path to Willow Glen left Miles without a means to detect the Renegade Soldier's current location. The smaller electronic pad on his watch wasn't equipped with any form of radar or sonar.

As Miles closed in on the desert he could feel the intense heat that radiated from scorching sand. The wind swept barren landscape was enough to make him feel uneasy.

"Amy found her Chaos Emerald in the temple, so she should be nearby..." Miles remembered her last update and kept his eyes peeled.

Circling the plane over the peak of the single remaining temple that protruded from the sand, Miles attempted to make radio contact with Amy again.

"Amy, can you hear me?"

" _I hear you. And... I can see you_!" Amy confirmed.

Looking over the edge of the plane Miles could see Amy standing on the top of the temple, waving her hand toward him. The harsh sunlight made it difficult to see, but he knew Amy was there.

Miles lowered the plane as he continued to circle the temple. Amy easily jumped from the temple's peak into the opened seating compartments of the Tornado III, taking the seat directly behind Miles. "Nice to see you again!" She greeted happily, the blue Chaos Emerald in her hand.

"Ditto!" Miles returned the greeting. "We have to head North and pick up Cream. She should be at the base of the mountain by now." He was speaking in a somber tone.

"Miles? What's wrong?" Amy could see the worry in Miles' eyes and hear the fear he tried to hide in his voice. "Did something happen at the mine?"

Miles hesitated before answering, not wanting to talk about Sonic. "I... I was told that Shadow was once at the mine."

"Shadow?! Where is he now? Is he okay?" Amy put her hand on Miles shoulder as she asked, preparing herself for the worst possible answer in response.

"I... don't know. Nobody does. He took on the Renegade Soldier... and lost."

"Lost?! Shadow? That can't be true!" Amy retracted her grip as she sat back and sank in her seat. "I can't be... Not Shadow, too..."

"I just don't know. I don't know what to say."

Feeling lost herself Amy looked out the side of the plane to the landscape so far below. The desert sand had quickly transitioned back to the jungle flora and from there began changing to the rocky terrain of the Crystal Peak Mountain. The chilly wind and snow flurries were refreshing to the pink hedgehog after spending so much time digging through the hot ruins in the desert.

"There!" Amy pointed out the side of the plane. "I can see Cream!"

Miles looked where Amy was pointing and saw Cream floating in mid-air using her ears. Cheese was at her shoulder, and both were waving at the passing plane.

Circling back Miles dove the plane low so Cream could easily land in the third seat of the Tornado III. Grabbing Cheese, wrapping the Chao up in her arms, Cream swiftly hovered down and into her seat. Reaching into her satchel she pulled out the sky blue Chaos Emerald. "I got it!"

"Good work, Cream!" Amy beamed as she turned around in her seat to look at the sweet mannered rabbit. "Three down! Now we just have to wait for Sonic and Tori to return to the temple."

Miles visibly flinched when Amy said Sonic's name, and Cream noticed.

"Miles? What's wrong?" She asked empathetically.

"Nothing..." He lied softly.

Cream shook her head. "Don't do that. Don't hold back. What happened?"

Amy spoke up on Miles' behalf. "We learned that Shadow was at the mine, but now we don't know where he is."

Cream's amber eyes widened with surprise. "But... what does Shadow have to do with Sonic?"

"What?" Amy didn't understand what Cream meant.

"When you said Sonic's name... it made Miles... well..."

Amy turned back around to face the fox. "Miles? Did... did something happen to Sonic or Tori?"

Letting out a defeated sigh Miles finally told them what he had heard. "The Renegade Soldier claimed that he had... injured... Sonic at the Lone Oasis."

Amy covered her mouth with her hands as her jawed dropped in surprise.

"I... I don't know if it's true or not." Miles continued. "But I do know that the Renegade Soldier was ordered to bring Sonic back to Eggman."

"We have to find Sonic!" Amy blurted in justified concern. "Fast!"

"I will." Miles admitted. "If Sonic is hurt then we can't risk losing the Chaos Emeralds we have collected, too."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying I'm dropping you two off at the temple with our three Chaos Emeralds. Take them to the mural chamber with the other two and have the volunteers return to Willow Glen. There will be alot of escaped captives needing help. And I don't want more innocent lives in danger..."

Amy wanted to argue with Miles, wanted to remind him that going off alone wasn't the answer, but she decided it was best not to pick a fight. Not now. Not when everything was so close to either falling apart or finally come together. "Okay, we trust you."

Miles could tell from Amy's tone that she wasn't comfortable with the idea of splitting up. "When the Black Ore Mine collapsed I saw the Renegade Soldier return to investigate. This is the perfect time to get to the oasis, find Sonic and Tori, and get back to the temple without being spotted. The smaller the group the better our odds."

Amy nodded her head in reluctant agreement. "Yeah. You're right. It's better this way..."

The Tornado III entered the jungle of the Mystic Ruins, the massive echidna temple located at the heat of the jungle was now visible. Cream took the three Chaos Emeralds and put them in her satchel. With Cheese still her arms Cream stood up in her seat and put her hand on Amy's arm. "Ready?"

"Ready!" Amy slowly got up from her seat and stood next to Cream.

"Jump!"

Cream and Amy jumped from the plane side by side. Cream held onto Amy's hands as she opened her broad ears to float gently to the jungle below, keeping Amy from landing too roughly.

The duo watched as the green plane returned to its stealth mode and vanished from sight as it headed West.

"Amy, you did the right thing." Cream reassured her upset friend. "I know how you feel about Miles being a 'lone wolf', and I remember how much you care about Sonic."

"I still care." Amy admitted with a blush. "I just don't want to see anyone get hurt... Not again."

"C'mon." Cream coaxed as she began jogging toward the temple. "We need to take care of the Chaos Emeralds and the volunteers!"

"Right, let's go!"

* * *

Miles watched the clouds very carefully, knowing that the Renegade Soldier could arrive at any moment. The collapse of the mine was able to bide the small group of rebels some time to get to the oasis, but the soldier moves fast!

"Come on guys... where are you?" Miles spoke aloud to himself as he flew over the oasis. "Sonic? Tori? _Where_ _are you_?"

* * *

Hiding in an air pocket in the water, beneath the stone surface of the Lone Oasis' ancient temple, Tori held onto Sonic's unconscious form. It was a struggle for her to keep his head above the water but she wasn't going to let him go. With his head resting against her shoulder, Tori used her hand to cover Sonic's mouth and nose as she dove back under the water, breaking through the surface near the edge of the stone walkway that led out of the oasis.

Satisfied that there was no immediate danger she climbed up onto the stone edge and dragged Sonic's body up behind her. "Sonic? Can you hear me?"

The blue hedgehog didn't respond. He didn't move. The wound on his chest was still bleeding. The water puddles that formed under his body began taking on a sickening red hue.

"Hold on!" She begged. "Don't leave us again! We need you! Please..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	16. Safe

Tori kneeled down next to Sonic and pulled him up onto her lap, so his was resting against her legs. The sun was beginning to set, the approaching darkness was sure to bring a bone chilling cold to its ominous arrival. Sonic wouldn't be strong enough to survive the night in his condition. He would be doomed to succumb to exposure in the middle of the night.

Above the steadily darkening oasis Miles circled in the Tornado III. The stealth design of the plane made it both difficult to see and to hear.

As Miles piloted the aircraft he carefully scanned the oasis below, looking for any sign of movement or any sign of life. "C'mon guys, don't do this! Don't disappear. Not again..."

Flying toward the entrance of the oasis for the second time, Tori caught a brief glimpse of something moving through the clouds. "Miles?" Her eyes widened with hope as she watched the craft slip in and out of the cloud cover. "It's him! We need to signal him, but how?" Tori looked all around herself and Sonic, looking for something, anything that could get Miles' attention. It was then she remembered the two Chaos Emeralds that she and Sonic had collected. "That's it!"

Taking the two gems, how she managed to hang onto them and Sonic during the Renegade Soldier's assault confounded her, and held them up high in the air above her head. The dwindling sunlight shined brightly through the purple and green Chaos Emeralds, send a colorful beacon into the sky.

* * *

From the cockpit of the Tornado III Miles caught sight of the bright colors from the Chaos Emeralds as they glinted from the pure surface of their magnificent gem forms, against the small windshield on the plane.

"What's that?" He leaned over the edge of the plane and focused at the source of the light. Just beneath the two glowing signals he could see Tori kneeling on the ground with Sonic laying against her. "There!" He excitedly blurted to himself as he lowered the plane for a quick landing.

* * *

Tori saw the plane diving low to the ground. "He saw us! Miles is here Sonic, don't worry." She kept talking to Sonic even though he was unconscious. A part of her believed that as long as she talked to him he'd stay with her.

The Tornado III landed silently a few yards from the stranded duo. Miles hopped out of the plane and jogged over to his two allies. "Tori, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She answered while stifling a mournful sob. "But Sonic..."

"I know." Miles took a knee and kneeled down next to Sonic. Despite all his lingering resentment toward Sonic, all his anger and even his mistrust toward the blue hedgehog, Miles felt his heart ache at seeing his former best friend laying on the ground in a puddle of blood. Picking up Sonic's hand Miles checked for a pulse, his eyes fixed on the bleeding injury to Sonic's chest. "He's alive. Weak, but alive." He bowed his head. "The Renegade Soldier is coming back. We need to move! NOW."

Tori was stunned to learn that Miles already knew about the attack. "How did you-"

"I overheard that maniac updating Eggman in the mine." Miles replied angrily as he put his arm under Sonic's shoulders and lifted the downed hedgehog up from Tori's lap into a sitting position.

"Oh." Tori could see Miles losing his cool and didn't want to press it. She took ahold of Sonic's arm and wrapped it around her shoulders while Miles did the same with Sonic's other arm.

Together Miles and Tori carried Sonic over to the Tornado III and carefully laid him down in the middle seat of the plane, on his back. Miles jumped into the cockpit while Tori took the third seat in the rear of the plane, the two Chaos Emeralds firmly in her grip.

"Hang on." Miles instructed. "This is going to be a fast trip!"

The Tornado III easily sped down the stone floor of the ruins, rolling over the heap of scrap metal that used to be a Badnik squadron, taking to the sky in a seamless motion. The green plane stood out brilliantly against the orange hue of the setting sun. Engaging the reflective paneling the plane vanished from sight as it turned toward the jungle in the heart of the Mystic Ruins.

Miles was determined to return to the temple with the Chaos Emeralds _and_ his friends. No one was going to stop him.

* * *

Cream ran into the mural chamber of the ancient echidna temple with Cheese hovering at her side. She stopped a few feet behind Amy, who was standing at the small altar with the Master Emerald and the collected five Chaos Emeralds all lined up together.

"That's everyone." Cream informed Amy in a relieved, but sad tone. "All the volunteers, refugees and rebels have returned to Willow Glen. They have plenty of supplies to get them from here to there without any difficulty. AND they have enough to aid the captives Miles freed from the mines."

"Good." Amy anxiously clasped her hands together and bowed her head. "It's safer for them to be as far away from the Chaos Emeralds as possible."

"Amy, what's wrong?" Cream had never seen Amy so full of doubt before. Even after Sonic disappeared she had always had a glint of hope in her eyes, but not anymore, it was gone.

"I... I saw something in the Nova Dunes. Something... awful! Something we MUST prevent at all costs!"

"What is it Amy?" Cream took Amy's shaking hands in her own to try and comfort her friend. "You can tell me and I'll do everything I can to help."

Amy slowly opened her green eyes and a single tear escaped as she looked at Cream. "I found a mural. It foretold of a world ending event. The Chaos Emeralds were at the center."

"They... they _caused_ it?"

"I think so, but I also think they stopped it. I'm not sure..." Amy looked away from Cream toward the all powerful emeralds at the altar. "The mural showed Chaos becoming Perfect Chaos and attacking the world, with two other monstrous beings. One being was the embodiment of sand and the other was the embodiment of fire."

Cream's eyes widened with fear and her hands began shaking as well. She tightened her grip on Amy's hands and took a deep breath. "...They used the Chaos Emeralds?"

Amy nodded and returned her gaze to Cream. "But... the Chaos Emeralds were also used by three heroes who worked together to fight these... _horrible_ titans!"

"Three?" Cream found it odd that there were three monsters and three heroes to combat them. "When Mister Sonic used the Chaos Emeralds to stop Perfect Chaos all those years ago, he fought him in a solo match. Maybe the other two heroes in the mural did the same thing. Each hero taking on a monster."

"Maybe." Amy pessimistically agreed. "But maybe the three heroes had to work together because they weren't strong enough... on their own."

"Everyone needs help. Even someone like Miles, Blaze or even Mister Sonic."

Amy smiled a little. "'Mister' Sonic? You still call him that?"

Cream blushed and grinned. "Old habit!"

Just as quickly as Amy's smile appeared it faded away. "I hope Sonic and Tori are okay."

"Miles will bring them back. I just know it!"

"Y-yeah." Amy tried to be more optimistic, but between discovering the mural and learning of Sonic being attacked, she was at her emotional breaking point.

From the interior chamber of the temple Amy and Cream heard a large stone paneling in the side of the temple slide open with a heavy echo, and the soft whirring of the Tornado III's engine as it entered the temple. The plane came to a halt and shut down its power on a hidden level just above the mural chamber.

"That's odd... Something... Something bad's happened!" Amy knew in her heart something was wrong. She unconsciously squeezed Cream's hands tighter in mounting fear "Miles said that secret hangar was _only_ to be used in emergencies..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	17. The Bonds of Friendship

Miles stopped the engine of the Tornado III as it came to a gentle stop inside the seldom used hangar, hidden away near the top of the echidna temple. He turned around in his seat to look at Sonic, who was still laying unconscious behind him. Tori leaned up from her own seat to look down at Sonic's expressionless face.

"Miles... Do you think he's going to...?" Tori didn't want to think about losing Sonic. She had only just met him but she was already quite fond of the heroic blue hedgehog. There was something about him that helped her overcome her natural shyness and gave her a sense of confidence.

"No. He's going to make it. He has to." Miles replied with a defiant tone as he carefully used his arms to support Sonic's shoulders as he lifted him up from the seat into a sitting position. "C'mon, there's a lift that'll take us down to the main chamber of the temple."

"Okay." Tori assisted Miles with lifting Sonic up and carrying the unconscious hedgehog to the designated lift against the far wall of the small hangar.

Pressing a triangular button hidden in the numerous ancient inscriptions of the surrounding wall, the stone panel beneath the trio's feet shook and slowly separated itself from the rest of the floor as it lowered to the chamber below.

Amy and Cream were already inside the chamber, having heard the Tornado III return only moments earlier. They watched with impatient concern as the lift descended into the chamber with their friends standing together on the stone panel. Miles and Tori holding Sonic confirmed their worries, Sonic had in fact been injured.

"Sonic..." Amy whispered in shock. She could already see the blood that stained his tan pelt.

Miles saw the fear in Amy's eyes and took control of the situation. "Amy, Cream, we need to patch up Sonic. We have the all the Chaos Emeralds, now we just need him to recover enough to use them properly. The timeline is at stake..."

Cream nodded confidently before jogging to a small room that adjoined the chamber. "Bring him over here."

The lift reached the bottom of the chamber with a low 'thud'. Miles and Tori proceeded to carry Sonic from the lift and to the room where Cream was waiting. Amy stood statuesque as her dear friend's unconscious body was carried past her. "No... Sonic..." Collecting herself Amy masked her grief and walked into the room in time to see Miles gently laying Sonic down on a small bunk in the center of the room.

Backing away from the bunk Miles watched as Cream opened up her satchel and removed the emergency first air kit contained within. "I can patch him up, but not much else. I'm not a doctor or a nurse, I can only provide basic first aid."

Miles put his hand on her shoulder in a reassuring manner. "Just do your best Cream, I have confidence in you."

Cream nodded again as she began cleaning the bleeding wound on Sonic's chest.

Amy stood in the doorway, her eyes glued on the form in the bed. "T-Tori..." She managed to finally stammer. "What happened?"

Tori, who had been standing next to Miles, walked over to Amy and took her arm to escort her back out of the chamber. "Amy, he... He was attacked by the Renegade Soldier."

"Was he... In pain?" She reluctantly asked the painful questions, wanting to know everything that happened to him.

"No, no!" Tori answered quickly and a little awkwardly. "He had destroyed a swarm of Badnik's after we found our Chaos Emeralds," She held out the purple and green gems for Amy to see. "and before he had a chance to react that cowardly goon shot him when he had his back turned. Sonic turned into the laser blast because... Because he was trying to protect me."

Amy could see the guilt in Tori's eyes. "Tori, he protects everyone. It's in his nature." She comforted in a calm tone. "Whether it was you or me or Cream or Miles who was with him, he would've done the exact same thing."

Tori gave Amy a small appreciative grin. "Yeah, I guess so."

"What... What happened next?"

"After Sonic was hit that goon told us not to move. I grabbed Sonic and dove into the water to hide. It worked."

Amy shook her head a little. "Sonic never learned how to swim. Never thought I'd see the day where being underwater would help him."

Tori looked at the Chaos Emeralds in her hands. "I think I should put these with the others."

"You're right." Amy turned her attention to the entrance to the mural chamber. "Now that we have all the Chaos Emeralds we're sure to stop Eggman once and for all." Her hands clenched into tight fists. "And we will be able to rebuild our world into something better!"

"Yeah!" Tori agreed wholeheartedly. "A world where no one will ever harm another creature or try to take over. Everyone will live in peace and harmony..."

Miles walked out of the smaller chamber and overheard the conversation. "But that world isn't here. Not yet."

Amy and Tori turned and looked at the saddened fox. His ears were low and he was dragging his single tail on the ground behind himself.

"Miles, how is he?" Amy asked quietly.

"He's holding his own. Cream cleaned the injury and wrapped him up. He's still unconscious but he isn't in any pain."

"Good..." Amy clasped her hands together. "That's good."

Miles had an interesting idea. "Amy, why don't you watch over him for a while? I have something I need to finish back at my workshop."

"O-okay." She was a little startled by the suggestion, but she didn't want to be anywhere else at that moment.

Miles and Tori watched as Amy slowly walked into the chamber. "Tori?"

"Yeah?"

"Put those two Chaos Emeralds with the rest. Then I want you and Cream to stay with the emeralds and keep watch."

"Keep watch? For what?"

"For someone who _may_ have spotted the Tornado III. We can't afford to let our guard down, for even a second."

"I guess you're right. Okay!"

Miles watched as the teal otter disappeared into the mural chamber with the remaining Chaos Emeralds in hand. Cream walked out of the smaller chamber and stood next to Miles. Cheese was, as usual, at her side.

"Cream, how is he?"

"Well... He... He lost alot of blood. And he didn't get medical attention until much later..."

"Is he...?" Miles trailed off, not wanting to think about Sonic dying.

"I don't think so. He has a strong constitution. But I don't think he'll be strong enough to use the Chaos Emeralds any time soon."

"Great..." He mumbled under his breath. "Uh, look, Amy's sitting with Sonic and I have to get back to my workshop, so I want you to help Tori guard the emeralds. Okay?"

"Okay." Cream never argued with Miles and trusted his leadership without question. "When will you be back?"

"I don't know. As soon as possible, I promise."

Cream nodded respectfully and jogged off to join Tori in the mural chamber.

Miles sighed heavily, looking over his shoulder at the small chamber where Sonic was laying, one last time. "Hang on..." He begrudgingly left the echidna temple, using the secret entrance to leave in a discreet, undetectable manner. It was difficult for him to leave his friends behind, knowing that Sonic couldn't defend himself and that the seven Chaos Emeralds always seemed to attract trouble.

Keeping low and moving fast Miles wove his way through the dense jungle and back to the Mystic Ruins where his workshop resided. "I have to go, I _have_ to finish it." He kept telling himself over and over again. "I _need_ to do this..."

Miles bolted for his workshop, waited for his security system to allow him access, then put the security system on high alert putting the entire workshop on lockdown. "No distractions. No intrusions. _Just_ the device."

A large rolled up blueprint sat in the rafters with a fine layer of dust covering it. Climbing up onto his workbench he pulled the long forgotten roll down from the ceiling and placed it on the workbench. Turning on a small overhead lamp Miles unrolled the blue print and stared at the intricate design. "Time machine..."

* * *

Amy sat in a chair next to the bunk where Sonic was laying. It was almost surreal to see the world's fastest hedgehog so still, so motionless, so without life. She watched his chest slowly rise and fall with his breaths, the white bandages hiding the bloody mess beneath.

"It's so chilly in this temple." Amy spoke aloud to herself and to Sonic as she unfolded the blanket tucked at the end of the bunk. She draped it over Sonic's resting form, covering his legs and waist but leaving his chest and arms exposed. "That should help."

In a caring manner Amy rested her hand on top of his and finally allowed the tears she had been holding back to fall. "I never thought I'd see you like this. And I _never_ stopped believing that you'd come back to us. I missed you so much, so did Miles and everyone else."

Sonic never moved, his breathing stayed at the same steady rate.

"When you vanished we were all so worried and frightened. Miles looked for you after being injured, he was gone so long and we thought that maybe... Maybe we lost him, too. He came back and we were so happy, but he was... Different. Something inside of him changed. During his journey some part of him was broken... or maybe a part of him was fixed, I'm not sure. But he was different. More focused, less timid and he seemed to just... stop caring about himself."

Amy didn't want to talk about Miles like this, but she felt as though Sonic deserved to know the truth. Continuing the painful tale Amy began gently rubbing Sonic's hand with her own.

"I know losing Knuckles was a huge tragedy that we're _still_ coming to terms with, but I didn't think it'd affect him so much. Maybe in his mind he blames himself for Knuckles' death. Knuckles went after Eggman with Shadow and Rouge, while Miles stayed behind. But he was _injured_! He _needed_ to recover! We all know this, and no one _ever_ blamed Miles for what happened to Knuckles..."

Amy paused to wipe away her tears.

"Tori was the only one Miles would talk to for the longest time. I'm not sure if it's because she has a prosthetic leg and can relate to Miles losing his second tail, or if it's because she was a new friend and never had a chance to bond with Knuckles, or with you, but she was his one true confidant during his recovery. I'm not sure how he'd be today without her. Then again I'm not sure how _any_ of us would be without Miles. He stepped up and took charge when everything fell apart."

Sonic's hand twitched beneath Amy's and she put her other hand on top of her first, wanting him to feel her presence.

"Rouge and Shadow disappearing shook us all. They seemed just as indestructible as you. But losing Blaze, Silver and even Vanilla... It was too much for Cream, and for me to bear. Miles stood by our sides and helped us find a new strength so we could continue on. After we started recruiting a small rebellion to rally against Eggman Miles began working on this temple so we all had a stronghold to use as a base. But after he finished work here he started holing himself up in his workshop, rarely stepping outside. I'm not sure what he was building besides the Tornado III, but whatever it was... It must be important."

Sonic's head turned slightly on the pillow, toward Amy. His eyes remaining closed.

"Oh, Sonic... How I wish I could know if you're hearing me or not. How I wish I could have one more day with you, before all of... _this_... ever happened. I'd tell you how much I appreciate you, how much I trust you, how much I... love..."

She paused for a moment and sighed. It was already so emotional for everyone involved in the day's odd events.

"I know you've been all over the world and seen so many amazing places, but have you ever been to the Nova Dunes?"

Sonic's eyelids fluttered lightly as he struggled to regain full consciousness. He could hear Amy's soothing voice and he could feel her warm hands holding his, but he didn't have the strength to open his eyes or to speak to her. Instead he just listened, grateful to hear a friend's kind words.

"While I was looking for the Chaos Emerald," Amy continued, unaware of Sonic's semiconscious state. "I explored a single ancient temple partially buried in the sand. Inside the temple I found a mural, one very much the one inside _this_ temple, except it depicted _three_ monsters attacking the world, not _one_!"

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Amy focused on bringing as many details from her memory of the mural to the surface.

"The mural showed Perfect Chaos destroying the world with water, a monstrous golem like beast; the very embodiment of sand or maybe even the Earth itself, destroying the world with massive earthquakes and landslides, and it showed a horrific being that looked like the embodiment of fire; in the form of a dragon, soaring through the skies and torching the world with flames! All by using the power of the Chaos Emeralds..."

Amy, unconsciously, began trembling. Her hands began shaking as she spoke.

"But... the mural also showed three other beings working together to stop these monsters! At first I though the temple had been constructed by an ancient tribe of armadillos, then I realized it was a tribe of _hedgehogs_. And the mural showed one hedgehog, one echidna and one fox all harnessing the power of the Chaos Emeralds to stop the end of the world. This is also why the Chaos Emeralds were protected by these ancient tribes. They knew the _true power_ of the Chaos Emeralds and wanted to do everything they could to keep the world from being destroyed. Again."

Sonic heard every word she spoke. He wanted to respond, to tell her that everything would be okay, but he still wasn't strong enough.

"I guess after the hedgehog and fox tribes died off the echidna tribe took full responsibility for the Chaos Emeralds. Then after a while temptation was too great, and well... Well, we all know what happened to Tikal's tribe. I'm glad we had someone as strong as Knuckles to guard the Master Emerald."

It pained Sonic to be unable to speak up, unable to provide comforting words of confidence, but he could also feel that Amy was a much stronger hedgehog than he had initially given credit for. He was proud to have her as a friend.

"I know you never saw me the way I saw you, and I know that I would sometimes get on your nerves. But no matter how much of a pest I could be, you were always there for me. You always came to my rescue and always made me feel safe." Her hands tightened nervously on Sonic's hand. "I'm not sure I ever really thanked you for saving me... I will now. Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me..." Sonic finally managed to whisper with a faint smile. "Your friendship is all I need..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	18. Plans in the Making

"Amy?" Sonic called her name wanting to be sure he wasn't dreaming. He opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling of the small chamber. "Are you there?"

"Yeah, I'm here." Amy replied gently as she squeezed his hand. "You're safe now."

"Where... Where's Miles?" He asked, feeling confused as he tried to sit upright. "Ah..." He clutched at the pain from the injury burned onto his chest.

"Shhh..." Amy used very little strength to push Sonic back down onto the bunk. "You need to rest now. Miles went to his workshop, he needed to finish something important."

"And the Chaos Emeralds? Where are they?"

"They're all here. All seven." She put her hand on top of his hand in a comforting manner. "They're in the mural chamber with the Master Emerald. Tori and Cream are keeping watch."

"Good." Sonic sighed weakly, feeling his strength fading. "As soon as Miles gets back, I'm going to return to the past and prevent this horrible future from ever happening!"

"Until then, rest." Amy checked his bandages, the injury had stopped bleeding and was showing signs of healing. Satisfied that there was no infection looming, Amy pulled the blanket up higher around Sonic, covering his bandaged chest. "We can handle things from here."

"Thanks Amy." Sonic shut his eyes and slipped into a fitful slumber.

"My pleasure." She replied softly as she blushed. She could feel his hand relax under her grip.

The pink hedgehog watched as Sonic dozed in the bunk. His eyes and ears twitched in his sleep and his breathing seemed pained from the fresh wound that marred his chest. _  
_

"Rest easy, my hero."

* * *

Miles stared at the long forgotten and dusty blueprint on the workbench. Seeing the worn out designs, smelling the dried ink and old paper, and seeing his named signed on the bottom right corner: 'Tails'; was almost too much for the emotionally taxed fox to handle. He took in a deep breath to steady his nerves before continuing to re-examine his dated calculations in the pale yellow light of the lamp overhead.

"Time travel. Seems so impossible, and yet, we've experienced several times. But how to _control_ it? How do we _focus_ it?"

Feeling exhausted from the days' events, Miles pulled up a stool and sat down heavily. He took off the high-tech watch strapped to his wrist and attached it to a powerful computer built into the wall. The watch began charging, regaining the power it lost throughout the day.

"Hmm... I wonder if I can update its software, install a tracking protocol to keep a look out for the Renegade Soldier?"

As he began tinkering with the watch Miles mind was free to wander. For reasons he couldn't explain his mind wandered back to the night Sonic vanished.

 **Six Years Ago...**

 _Tails watched from the partially opened workshop door as Sonic ran to the neighboring train station, only to discover the train had already departed._

 _"Never seen Sonic miss a train before!" Tails laughed to himself as Sonic casually tossed his red Chaos Emerald into the air and took off in the opposite direction. As Sonic passed by he closed the door and locked it. "Oh well, he can run faster than that old train, anyway!"_

 _Outside a summer storm was quickly brewing. The building clouds easily blocked the natural starlight, creating a spooky darkness that engulfed the interior of the workshop._

 _"Whoa! Creepy!" Tails commented as he rushed over to the workbench and hovered up to the lamp, turning it on. "That's better."_

 _As the pale yellow light kept the darkness at bay, the sound of heavy rain on the tin roof of the workshop was almost deafening. The rumbling thunder that encroached the workshop, traveling quickly through the jungle and into the Mystic Ruins, wasn't helping matters. But it was the sudden flash of lightning that put Tails over the edge._

 _"Gah!" Tails panicked and ducked under the workbench. "I hate storms! I hope Sonic managed to get home without getting caught up in the storm... Maybe I should've told him to stay. Maybe I should go after him... just to be sure."_

 _Another lightning flash made the timid fox freeze in place, cowering under the workbench. "Never mind! He can handle it."_

 **The Present...**

"Yeah, he can handle it..." Miles repeatedly mournfully, regretfully. His own words were haunting.

"I never should've let him go. I should've gone out into the storm to find him. He disappeared because of ME!" Miles slammed his fists down on the workbench as tears of guilt rolled down his face and onto the blueprint. "It's my fault! It's _all_ my fault..." He fell to his knees, whimpering into his hands. "And I can never make anything right. It's too late... I failed..."

The painful memories weighed heavily in his heart.

Pulling himself up by the workbench, he stood before the worn blueprint and glared at his own name on signed on the bottom. Taking a grip on the corner of the blueprint he tore his name from the paper and crumpled it up into a little ball. Bit by bit he tore the blueprint to shreds, tossing the scraps carelessly over his shoulder. "It's no use... Without the natural power of a lightning strike, we could never-"

A moment eureka struck the disgruntled fox. "Wait a minute..."

Climbing up onto the workbench and reaching into the rafters he pulled down a fresh, unmarked, rolled up blueprint and laid it on the table. In the process another blueprint roll was jostled free.

"Lightning! I wonder..." Before he could put ink to paper a second blueprint fell from the rafters and bumped him on the head. Picking up the mysterious document he unrolled it and felt his heart skip a beat as his eyes widened with excitement at the image drawn out before him, and he finally smiled.

* * *

At the center of the long decimated, assimilated, corrupted, decaying and heavily armed Station Square Plaza stood the ominous 'Robotnik Tower'. The tower was a tall cylindrical structure composed of reinforced steel and concrete, standing at a looming 800 feet in height with 80 stories to its credit. The top of the tower was peaked with a massive antennae used to send out signals to control and direct the patrolling Badniks who were slowly taking over the entire region in swarms.

At the base of the tower two large bay doors opened every twenty-four hours to unleash a swarm of Badniks. Each swarm was pre-programmed with designated coordinates. No two sets of Badniks and subsequent coordinates were alike. One swarm would take over and patrol one section of the region while another swarm would invade a completely different location.

There was no pattern of behavior, no predictability and way to prepare for the next swarm. The scarcely remaining denizens had no means of a preemptive strike, which provided virtually no resistance to Eggman's violently oppressive tactics or squadrons.

Jutting out from the 80th floor was a large balcony exposed to the sky above. Gatling guns, cameras and sensors lined the balcony as the only non-sentient security for the structure.

Dr. Robotnik; a.k.a. Eggman, sat in a giant red throne at the center of the balcony. His hands were clenched into tight fists as he gripped the sides of the throne. The blood red cape that hung from his shoulders pooled out onto the floor beneath him. The soulless blackened eyes of the madman stared out into the eternal nothingness of the night sky.

The black sky with stars few and far between began to grow even darker as storm clouds began building in a thick mass. Thunder rumbled in the distance and brief flashes of lightning lit up approaching the storm.

Pressing a button on the control panel attached to the side of the throne Eggman contacted the Renegade Soldier. "Soldier, report."

A fiery orange glow in the distance closed in on the balcony as the Renegade Soldier approached the tower at top speed. The force from the soldier's rocket powered engines on its feet created a powerful flow of energy and wind that warmed the balcony beneath its form. With a heavy 'thud' the soldier dropped from the air and at the feet of Eggman, still sitting in his throne.

"Tell me, where _is_ Sonic the Hedgehog?"

The Soldier's emotionless, robotic voice answered in a monotone. 'CURRENT LOCATION OF SONIC THE HEDGEHOG: UNKNOWN.'

"'Unknown'? How can this be? If he was injured at the oasis then he should have been _unable_ to escape. Unless... That otter! She can _swim_. She must've hidden that blue menace deep in the ruins..." Eggman's arms relaxed from the sides of his throne, folding tiredly in his lap. "What is Sonic's current _physical condition_?"

'CURRENT CONDITION: CRITICAL.'

Eggman chuckled wickedly. "You're sure?"

'AFFIRMATIVE. TRACE SIGNATURE OF SONIC THE HEDGEHOG'S LATEST VITAL SIGNS CONFIRM BLOOD LOSS AND HYPOTHERMIA.'

"Excellent! Perhaps his presence isn't a threat after all..." Eggman seemed disgustingly pleased with the reported situation. "There was a strong seismic disturbance from the South. What did you find upon examining the scene?"

'REPORT: BLACK ORE MINE HAS BEEN DESTROYED. ALL CAPTIVE LABOR HAS ESCAPED.'

"What?!" Eggman asked in an angry huff, slamming his fists down on the sides of the throne in frustration. "How can this be?!"

'CAUSE OF DESTRUCTION APPEARS TO BE SABOTAGE.'

"Sabotage?" Eggman rubbed at his chin inquisitively. "Who is the prime suspect?"

'TRACE ANALYSIS INDICATES A SINGLE INTRUDER. KNOWLEDGE OF MECHANICS INDICATES THE INTRUDER IS HIGHLY INTELLIGENT.'

"Hmph!" Eggman scoffed, a twisted grin marking his face. "I know of only _one_ potential threat to my reign who is capable of such a feat: Miles 'Tails' Prower."

The Soldier lifted its arm and pressed a button on the metallic gauntlet that armored it. A three-dimensional holographic display of Miles appeared in a pale blue light. The holograph depicted the clever fox before and after he lost his second tail during his last encounter with Eggman.

"Yes, that's him! That 'sweet' little fox has become quite a nuisance. A majority of his attempts to stop me were a childish plight, the actions of a mere boy trying to be a man. But _now_ he has crossed the line and my patience toward his antics has worn out."

Standing up from the throne and approaching the edge of the balcony to watch the storm, Eggman turned slightly and pointed his finger at the awaiting, enslaved robotic Solider standing behind him. "Soldier, you have a new assignment: Bring him to me. Bring me Miles Prower. Alive..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	19. Taken

The echidna temple remained eerily quiet as it sat undisturbed in the jungle. The stone structure had withstood thousands of years of wars, storms, attacks and the ever present evolution of society itself. Somehow its expansive history made the temple a somber locale, a monument to all the tragedy and change it had bore witness throughout its initial construction.

Outside of the temple the jungle was uncommonly still, the only slightest of movements came from a strengthening summer storm's breeze rustling the flora. Inside of the temple it was just as still. The only movement was Sonic's slow breathing as he slept. Amy remained seated, statuesque, at Sonic's bunk while Cream and Tori sat nervously side by side in front of the Master Emerald in the neighboring mural chamber.

Neither Cream nor Tori were trained in any form of combat, even with all the years of destruction they lived through. Hostility simply wasn't their nature. Their only plan in the event of an Badnik invasion was to grab the Chaos Emeralds and flee!

Sonic had been sleeping for roughly two hours when Cream stopped by the chamber to check in on him. Amy had began dozing herself, but in a very light slumber. She awoke as soon as Cream walked up to Sonic's bunk.

"Cream?" Amy asked a low voice so she wouldn't disturb Sonic. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," Cream replied with a warm smile and quiet voice of her own. "I just wanted to see how he's doing. Everything okay on your end?"

"Just fine. He's been able to rest pretty well."

"Is he in any pain?" She asked as she gently lowered the blanket to check on Sonic's bandages.

"Only when he tried to sit up."

"I wish I could do more to help him." Cream admitted sadly.

Amy put her hand very lightly on Cream's arm. "You've done plenty, thank you."

Sonic's eyes fluttered quickly, his ears twitching at the conversation taking place around him. His green eyes slowly focused on the sweet face of the young rabbit leaning over him. "Cream?"

"Oh, I didn't mean to wake you! I'm sorry!"

"Don't sweat it. It's time to get up, anyway." He grinned as he used his arms to slowly push himself upright on the bunk. "Anything exciting happen while I was out?"

Amy and Cream exchanged concerned glances before the pink hedgehog spoke up. "Sonic, are you sure you want to get up? You should rest a little longer."

"I'm fine." Sonic winked to reassure her. "Nothing I can't handle."

"Okay, just..."

"I'm good, I promise." He responded with a confident smile as he swung his legs over the edge of the bunk and carefully stood. His left arm was wrapped around his chest to ensure his upper body had the proper support to stay balanced. "See?"

"I guess." Amy tried to return the same confident smile, but her concern was still evident in her shining green eyes.

Sonic changed the subject to ease her worry. "Cream, you and Tori have been keeping watch over the seven Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald, right?"

"Uh-huh." Cream confirmed.

"No sign of Eggman, the Renegade Soldier or any Badniks?"

"Not one."

"What about Miles?"

Cream sadly shook her head. "Not yet."

"Hm... Do you know what he's supposed to be working on?" He inquired the gentle rabbit as he slowly walked passed her and into the main chamber of the echidna temple.

Again, Cream shook her head. "No one does. Miles keeps all of his projects to himself."

Amy followed Sonic into the main chamber, while Cream followed close behind the two hedgehogs curiously.

"I want to go outside, keep an eye for him." Sonic admitted, his eyes transfixed on the spiral stone staircase the led from the interior of the temple to the exterior.

"No way!" Cream jogged over and put herself between Sonic and the doorway. "If something happened to you, I'd never forgive myself!"

Sonic put his hand on Cream's shoulder. "I'll be okay. I can take care of myself, and I know that if something does go wrong you and Amy and Tori will always help me out."

"But... why do you have to go alone?"

"I don't." Sonic turned and looked at Amy over his shoulder. "Amy can join me. Tori still needs you to help guard the Chaos Emeralds."

Amy, who wasn't entirely comfortable with Sonic going outside either, approached the blue hedgehog and casually brushed her long pink quills out of her face. "Are you sure about this?"

Sonic gave them both a thumb's up.

"Okay. Let's go." Amy walked at Sonic's side as the two hedgehogs made the long climb back up the staircase to the outside world. "We can make contact with Miles when we get outside." She motioned to the communicator still attached to her ear.

Cream watched as the duo disappeared up the staircase, out of sight. "Be careful out there, you two..."

* * *

"That should do it..." Miles finished the final details on his latest completed project.

Laying before him in all its metallic glory was a silver belt. A very ordinary looking belt, yet it contained something extraordinary within its complicated confines. The belt's buckle had a small red button glowing on the front. With a single press of the button the belt's true purpose would be revealed.

Miles fastened the belt around his waist. The harmless looking accessory blended in seamlessly with his work boots and work gloves. "Perfect fit."

A high pitched beep from the watch indicated that its software updates were completed. Miles unplugged the watch from the computer and strapped it back around his wrist. "Hm, I couldn't add a tracking program for the Renegade Solider, but I _can_ track a specific electrical signature from the soldier's armor. _If_ I can get close enough."

" _Miles, are you there_?" Amy's voice suddenly popped into his head.

"Amy, I'm here. Is there anything wrong?"

" _No, we're okay. Just wanted an update_."

Miles sighed to himself, relieved that everyone was still safe. He exited his workshop, reinstating the security protocol as he left. "I'm finished. I'm on my way back to the temple right now."

" _Good to hear! We'll be keeping an eye out for you_!"

After entering the old mining tunnel that connects the Mystic Ruins to the Jungle, Miles began jogging and then running. They were so close to restoring the timeline to its natural flow, he was almost excited! "Almost there guys, soon everything will be as they should. Sonic never disappeared, Eggman never took over and we never lost Knuckles, or Blaze, or Silver, or Vanilla or anyone! We'll all be together again!"

Passing through the tunnel, stepping back into the jungle where the storm was building quickly, Miles stopped at the top of the cliff edge and looked out to the center of the jungle where the lone temple stood. The darkness of the night sky combined with the thick storm clouds made it nearly impossible for Miles to make out the shape of the dark temple against the black skyline.

Jumping down from the cliff, using his impressive memory to direct him through the thick jungle, Miles approached the echidna temple where Sonic and Amy were waiting outside.

From out of the darkness an orange fireball appeared behind Miles. The astute fox sensed another presence. He stopped in his tracks and turned on his heel, his eye drawn to the fireball. "What the...?"

The fireball suddenly grew larger as it came closer to the fox.

"The Renegade Solider!" Miles suddenly recognized the foreign object closing in on him. He took a defensive stance, ready to fight. His ears were flatted back and his teeth were showing in an angry sneer at his approaching foe.

The Soldier closed in, hovering a few feet above Miles before it landed with a heavy 'thud' on the ground in front of him. 'DO NOT MOVE. DO NOT RESIST'

"Not a chance!" Miles retorted, standing his ground.

'YOU ARE NOW A PRISONER OF DR. ROBOTNIK. COME WITHOUT RESISTANCE AND YOU WILL NOT BE HARMED.'

"Apparently you didn't hear me the first time: _NOT a chance_..." Miles repeated, ready to fight back as soon as the Soldier made a move.

Raising its arm it pointed its hand at Miles. An aura of energy encompassed the limb as it prepared to fire.

' _Not this time_...' Miles thought to himself as he swiftly jumped to the side, avoiding the laser blast with minimal effort.

On the ground where Miles once stood was a smoldering black crater, created by the powerful energy blast. Even in the darkness of the night Miles could see the scorched earth, let alone smell the putrid smoke.

* * *

From the top steps of the echidna temple, Sonic and Amy were sitting together. Sonic was watching the nearest jungle trail, waiting for Miles to show up while Amy lightly rested her head against Sonic's shoulder.

He didn't mind Amy leaning against him. Having her so close to him was a welcome comfort in light of the days' dangerous events. Her longer pink quills ran down her back, barely brushing against him whenever the wind picked up.

The sound of the Renegade Soldier's attack in the distance caught Sonic's attention. "What was that?!" He asked, quickly standing up and rousing Amy in the process. He flinched as the sudden movement caused his chest to ache violently.

She stood up right next to him and looked out where Sonic was already staring. "What is it?"

"I heard something... The Renegade Soldier! It's attacking!"

"How can you be sure?!" She asked as she wrapped her arms around his.

"I _know_ that sound... It was the last thing I heard when I was at the oasis..."

Another laser blast confirmed Sonic's suspicions.

Someone was in danger.

* * *

Miles easily dodged one laser attack after another. In his mind he knew he couldn't defeat the armored goon with his strength alone. He had no weapon, no back-up and no means of escape. If he ran the soldier would continue its pursuit, possibly locating the hide out in the echidna temple in the process. Thinking quickly Miles used his watch to trace the Renegade Soldier's electronic signature.

'REMAIN IDLE.' The Renegade Soldier demanded as it returned to the sky.

Panting a little Miles waited in a kneeling position for the soldier to make another move. "Never! I'll never stop!"

Unfortunately for Miles the Renegade Soldier wasn't a run-of-the-mill Badnik. The soldier didn't follow basic programming with a preset attack pattern. Turning up the power of its laser cannon the soldier pointed at the ground just behind Miles.

The fully charged impact from the laser sent Miles flying forward as the shock wave struck him in the back, knocking him unconscious. Smoke and dirt clouds encircled the helpless fox as he laid on his chest on the ground.

The Renegade Soldier approached its target with the intent to capture when a angry voice called out to it. "Hey you!"

It turned its head in time to see Sonic standing a few feet behind Miles when Amy's piko-piko hammer struck it in the back, sending it flying face first into the ground.

"Don't hurt my friend!" Sonic declared as he kneeled down next to Miles. His arm was still wrapped around his injured chest.

The soldier, stunned by the hammer attack, pushed itself up from the ground and pointed the laser at Amy.

"STOP!" Sonic yelled at the soldier. "Don't hurt them. _I'm_ the one you want, right?"

The Renegade Soldier lowered its arm. 'INITIAL PRIMARY TARGET: SONIC THE HEDGEHOG.' It looked down at Sonic then over to Miles. 'CURRENT TARGET: MILES PROWER.'

"Take me!" Sonic demanded, standing up and putting himself between Miles and the soldier.

"Sonic, no!" Amy cried out. "We can't lose you!"

"You won't Amy, I promise. I'll find my way back to you." He looked back over his shoulder at Miles. "Take care of Miles for me."

The Renegade Soldier stared momentarily at Sonic before making its final decision. 'INITIAL TARGET IS THE PRIORITY. TARGET CHANGED. TARGET: SONIC THE HEDGEHOG.'

Sonic put his hands up in the air to surrender. "Don't harm my friends and I'll come quietly, and I won't resist."

'CONDITIONS ACCEPTABLE.' The Renegade Soldier took a step toward Sonic and raised its opposite hand. From it a blue energy bubble emerged and encapsulated the blue hedgehog. 'TARGET ACQUIRED.'

With Sonic in custody the Renegade Soldier took to the sky, pulling the energy bubble behind it as it flew off into the pitch-black nothingness of the night sky.

Amy jogged a few steps after the soldier. "SONIC! No! Come back!" She fell to her knees next to Miles as tears welled up in her eyes. "Not again..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	20. The Beginning of the End

Sonic remained fearless in the face of imminent danger. The impenetrable blue energy bubble that encompassed his entire form, preventing him from escaping or resisting, clouded his vision as the Renegade Soldier proceeded to transport the captured hedgehog to Robotnik Tower.

The storm charged the air with excitement. The air smelled of the sea and the wind blew across the region in a single, warm breeze.

Feeling exceptionally alone in his moment of capture, Sonic shut his eyes and tried to picture his life, his friends, his home; before the timeline had been altered. The memories seemed too long ago, more like a dream than reality. A tear formed in his eye but he wiped it away before it had a chance to fall. Now wasn't the time to lose hope or to even think about giving up.

Wrapping his arm around his injured and aching chest, Sonic prepared himself for the inevitable confrontation with Eggman that awaited him at the end of his uncontrollable journey at the hands of his captor.

Outside the bubble, flying at a tremendous speed that could only be bested by Sonic himself, the Renegade Soldier brought Sonic to the eightieth floor of Robotnik Tower. Hovering over the balcony the Renegade Soldier pressed a single button on its metallic gauntlet releasing Sonic from his energy prison.

Thanks to his lightning quick reflexes Sonic was able to compensate for the sudden drop and land safely on his feet. The impact however was enough to cause him to flinch and grasp at his wounded chest, kneeling down on the marble floor in the process. As the burning pain shot through his body Sonic shut his eyes tight and took in a deep breath. As he slowly opened his eyes he saw his own reflection on the incredibly shiny, untarnished marble floor. Across from his own reflection he could see Eggman approach him with heavy steps.

"Well, well, well..." Eggman stopped a few feet in front of Sonic with his arms folded behind back. "It's been a while."

"Eggman..." Sonic snarled through gritted teeth as he looked up to stare into the deranged human's eyes. "You'll pay for this..."

Chuckling Eggman snapped his fingers and signaled the Renegade Soldier to land behind Sonic. "Oh, I think not."

Sonic heard the sound of the soldier's laser weapon powering up, knowing that it was pointed directly at the back of his head.

"One false move and my loyal soldier will destroy you with a single blast."

Sonic tensed up and glared with pure hatred at Eggman. "Why not kill me now? What's your game?"

"No game." Eggman turned on his heels an faced away from Sonic. His red cape resting just under Sonic's nose. "Just a show."

"Show? No tell?" Sonic snipped as he slowly rose to his feet, the entire time he could feel the Renegade Soldier's aim still focused on the back of his head.

"Oh Sonic, how I missed our little dialogues before our epic showdowns." Eggman glanced over his shoulder at the prisoner. "Tomorrow morning, just before sunrise, I will announce my eternal reign as ruler of this meager world. An announcement that will be broadcast to the entire world, causing the cowardly masses to tremble in fear. I promise that I will shall remain as the single most powerful force in all of the world. And I will seal this promise in your blood."

Sonic felt his heart skip a beat. His injury would keep him from running at full speed, there was no way he'd be able to dodge whatever the nasty attack was that Eggman had planned.

"Solider, you've done well. Escort our 'guest' to the dungeon. Afterward return to the Mystic Ruins, I want Miles Prower brought before me. I want to warm up the crowd by finishing off that fox, first."

"NO!" Sonic blurted desperately as he instinctively bolted toward Eggman.

Sonic was fast, but the soldier was faster. With a single shot to the back he stunned Sonic, leaving the hedgehog sprawled in an unconscious heap at Eggman's feet.

"Such spirit..." Eggman commented dryly. "You always were, and always shall be, my most worthy adversary; Sonic the Hedgehog."

* * *

The first thing Miles had become aware of he slowly regained consciousness was the cool earth under his back. Next a warm hand supporting the back of his head, while a second warm hand rested on his chest. After tha he could hear gentle sobbing from someone very close. A single warm drop of water, a tear, had fallen on his face.

Miles slowly opened his heavy blue eyes and focused on the incredibly upset face leaning over him. "Amy?"

"Miles?" Amy wiped the tears from her eyes as she looked down at his face. "Are you... Are you okay?"

Miles slowly sat upright, away from Amy's arms. "I'm fine. I think." He looked around confused until he finally remembered being ambushed on his way through the jungle. "The Renegade Soldier! Where is he?! What happened?!"

"He... He took... Sonic." Amy confessed sadly.

"WHAT?!" Miles stood up in a huff and looked around as if by some miracle he'd be able to see Sonic or the soldier still in the jungle. "What happened?!"

"Sonic... Surrendered himself to save us!"

"No..." Miles' entire body slouched as the regret overwhelmed him.

"What're we going to do?" Amy took a breath to prevent herself from crying again. "We have to do something!"

Miles looked at his watch, looking down to the gloved hand attached and clenched it into a fist, as he closed his eyes and lifted his head to the night sky. The building storm above finally unleashed its fury as the natural phenomenon swept over the ruins. The cool rain and warm wind caused Miles' fur to stand on end. He opened his eyes and watched as a bolt of lightning flashed in the clouds overhead.

His hands reached for his belt and tightened his grip. "Amy..."

Amy walked up to the intensely focused fox.

"We're going to save Sonic. Tonight."

"Now?"

"Now."

"But-"

"Amy, tell Cream and Tori to go to Willow Glen. Tell them to take cover and keep the refugees safe. You and I are going to take the Chaos Emeralds and we're going to break into Robotnik Tower."

"What? We can't..."

"Yes. We can. And we will." Miles gave Amy a look that she had never seen before. "Hurry. We can't afford to lose any more time."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	21. Going In!

Sonic awoke with a burning pain in his back, ringing in his ears and a strong ache in both of his wrists. Opening his green eyes Sonic's vision steadily cleared, what he saw before him was not what he had hoped to see. The blue hedgehog found himself locked away in a high tech dungeon, he was suspended in midair by two chains shackled to his wrists. He feet couldn't touch the floor.

The thick transparent glass door of the dungeon unlocked for the other side with a heavy thud and high pitched beep. Eggman casually strolled into the dungeon and walked right up to Sonic. His own dark eyes glaring into Sonic's brighter eyes.

"Awake? Good."

"Eggman!" Sonic snarled angrily as he tried to pull his hands free from the strong shackles. "You're NOT going to win!"

"Hmph. I already have, you just haven't accepted it. Yet."

Sonic pulled harder on the chains, using every ounce of his remaining strength to break free from the thick metal bindings. It was no use.

"Don't waste your strength. Those cuffs are made of pure platinum. Virtually unbreakable by mortal hands."

Sonic glared again and attempted to kick at Eggman, who easily stepped back and out of reach of the strikes. "You'll pay Eggman! I swear it!"

Eggman just flashed a sinister grin as he looked down at the antique brass watch on his own wrist. "I doubt it. Two hours until sunrise. Until we meet again..."

As Eggman turned to leave his red cape swung around, wrapping around his body and legs before dragging along the ground behind the demented scientist. It was like watching a pool of blood following the deranged madman.

With a heavy heart Sonic watched as his captor exited the dungeon through the door, locking it with advanced electronics that couldn't be broken. Sonic's head dropped, his eyes focused on the shiny marble floor and his own reflection being displayed upon the unmarred surface.

"Miles... No, not Miles, _Tails_! I'm sorry. Amy, Cream, Tori..." He shut his eyes and pictured all of his friends together; happy and alive. "Knuckles, Blaze, Silver, Shadow, Rouge, Espio, Vector, Charmy, Vanilla... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry... Please, forgive me. I wasn't strong enough... I wasn't good enough..."

* * *

Miles and Amy side by side ran into the echidna temple together, their minds focused on one thing: Rescuing Sonic.

While Amy ran into the mural chamber to inform both Cream and Tori about Sonic's capture, Miles returned to the secret hangar inside the temple. Hopping into the cockpit of the Tornado III Miles powered up the plane's engine and began picking up speed to take off into the stormy night sky.

The exterior stone panel of the temple slid open allowing the plane to escape. Miles circled the temple, waiting for Amy to exit.

From the dark sky Miles could barely make sense of the jungle layout far below. Movement at the secret entrance of the temple caught his attention. Amy was leading Cream and Tori out of the temple.

The trio gathered together at the bottom of the temple steps, huddled together in attempt to keep the harsh storm from causing too much discomfort. Amy had Cream's satchel over her shoulder along with her piko-piko hammer. Cream was holding her Chao and Tori was carrying a large bag with the remaining supplies tucked inside.

"Amy, why do we have to leave?" Cream asked sadly, Cheese wrapped up in her arms and hugged against her chest.

"Because it's too dangerous. If we fail... If we can't stop Eggman, you two are our best chances of a second try!"

Tori put her hand on Cream's shoulder. "We can handle it Amy. I promise."

"Thanks guys. We're counting on you."

Cream and Tori gave Amy a nod of respect before jogging off into the jungle together. The two timid rebels would seek shelter in Willow Glen and protect the refugees who were given sanctuary in the small village.

Amy waved her hand at Miles who was circling above. She turned on her earpiece to make contact with him. "I'm ready."

The Tornado III dipped down from the sky until it was floating just inches above the ground. Miles, the ace pilot, was able to easily maneuver the aircraft through the jungle trees and stone ruins without any damage whatsoever.

Amy hopped into the plane as it passed, taking the seat behind Miles.

"Do you have what we need?" Miles asked as pulled the plane back into the sky above the treeline.

Putting her hand on Miles' shoulder Amy answered calmly. "Yeah. I have them." She pulled the satchel from her shoulder and rested it on her lap with her hammer.

"Good. We're going to need them."

The Tornado III sped through the night sky in near silence. The flight from the Mystic Ruins to Station Square felt unnaturally long for the determined heroes.

Shortly after Eggman took over Station Square and constructed Robotnik Tower no aircraft dared to enter the airspace above the vacated and destroyed city. The Tornado III would be spotted almost instantly. Stealth was the key to successful infiltration of the tower.

The storm continued to rage on. Strengthening winds made it increasingly difficult for Miles to pilot the plane, keeping it on the ideal flight path. The rain was getting colder, causing both occupants of the plane to shiver. Thunder rumbled eerily close and lightning flashes caused their fur to stand up on end.

"Hang on! I'm going to get above the storm!" Miles called back to his lone passenger.

The Tornado III climbed higher and higher, breaking through the thick storm clouds and cutting through the chilling rain. The green plane broke through the top of the storm clouds and into a black sky littered with thousands upon thousands of stars. The calm beauty of the starlight above gave the raging storm below an intimidating aura of its own.

Amy nervously clutched at the satchel. "Miles, do you really think we can do this? Time travel seems so... I don't know, unreliable. Isn't there another way?"

Miles didn't look at her, his eyes focused on the massive isolated tower in the distance. "There is another way. But even after everything that has happened... Sonic could never take Eggman's life."

Amy's eyes widened with fear. "I understand." She hugged the satchel close to her heart.

"This is it..." Miles breathed slowly, trying to calm his racing heart before it beat out of his chest. "We need to jump. Together."

"Okay..." Amy stood up slowly and looked over the edge of the plane to their target stationed below.

The Tornado III circled the antennae at the top of Robotnik Tower. The antennae was tall enough to pierce through the clouds and into the storm.

"When I count to three, we'll jump down together. We need to be fast and we need to be silent."

"Right..." Amy tried to hide her fear but it was no use.

"Everything will be fine." Miles offered the much needed words of comfort in a very soothing and honest tone. He turned on the plane's autopilot "Give me your hand."

Amy held out her shaking hand for Miles to take. He took her hand between both of his and squeezed tightly before removing the watch from his own wrist and strapping it to hers.

"What's this for?"

"If something happens, if you're in danger and you don't know what to do, press the red button on the side of the watch."

Nodding Amy tightened her grip on the satchel and the hammer in her hands. "Let's do it!"

Miles wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they stood together on the side of the plane. "One, two, three!"

Moving in perfect synchronization Miles and Amy leapt from the plane, diving into the clouds and landing on the side of the antennae. The impact of their bodies striking the metal antennae was drowned out by a sudden rumble of thunder.

"You okay?" Miles asked quietly.

"Yeah. Are you?" Amy replied in a shaking voice, her hands in a death grip around her hammer and the satchel.

"I'm good."

Miles kept his arm wrapped around Amy as he grasped one of the smaller support beams running the length of the antennae. One beam at a time, climbing down as if the antennae were a ladder, Miles helped Amy as they descended from the top of the antennae down to the roof of the tower.

"This is it." Miles kneeled down on the roof with Amy at his side. "Stay here and stay quiet. You'll be safe."

"What about you?"

Miles walked to the edge of the roof and put his hands on his belt. "I'm going in!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	22. Familiarity

Miles stood tall and proud at the edge of the roof, his single bushy tail off the ground and held up high like when he had two. The howling wind swirled around, blowing his long bangs to and fro across his face. He looked down at the balcony just twenty feet below and closed his eyes. ' _One leap and I'm in_.'

Amy watched with bated breath as her friend leapt from the roof, the clever fox fell from sight and into the darkness the loomed beneath.

Taking a breath and holding it, Miles jumped up into the air and prepared for the rough landing onto the balcony below. As soon as he felt his boots touch the ground he kneeled and kept low to avoid visual detection. "Amy," Miles turned on his ear piece and whispered. "I'm in."

" _Thank goodness!_ _Good luck. Be safe._ "

"I will." Turning off the earpiece Miles stood up slowly and crept off the balcony and into the expansive interior locale that Eggman frequented.

Miles walked past the massive throne and felt his stomach churn. 'T _hat self righteous fiend_...' Beyond the throne, at the far wall, stood a very large metallic door that led into the depths of the tower. There was no lock, only two massive handles.

Pushing with all his might Miles managed to open the doors wide enough to peek through and scan the hall for patrolling Badniks. All clear.

Miles kept one hand on his belt as he quietly and discreetly walked down the lengthy hallway. As a mechanic and engineer, the single piece of commonality that he and Eggman shared, Miles was able to navigate the tower by successfully identifying what was contained on each floor. Top floor was reserved as Eggman's private chamber, while the floor below was for machine maintenance. The next floor was a lab and the next was storage.

After scoping out the top five floors Miles determined that any form of prison cell would be in the center of the tower. By being sealed away in the central-most location of the building it ensured that in the event of prisoner escape they'd be unable to make a fast exit through the roof or the main lobby. He also determined that the most efficient and inconspicuous route would be through the ventilation ducts that ran the entire length of the building.

Prying a vent grate loose wasn't easy but with enough force Miles was able to pull the metal covering free without attracting any unwanted attention. ' _So far so good..._ ' He slipped into the vent and began crawling through the duct work.

* * *

Sonic stopped trying to pull his hands free of the metal cuffs that kept his suspended above the floor. His hands were numb and his wrists were bleeding from the consistent pressure being applied. The lingering burn on his chest was aching profusely, while the fresh burn on his back stung with every breath he took.

The energy beam that stunned him from behind had easily cut through the white gauze that had been wrapped around his chest earlier. The loosened bandages slowly unwrapped from his body and pooled on the floor beneath him into a pile of white fabric.

"Wonder how long before sunrise?" He asked aloud, not expecting an answer. He looked around the windowless cell. "Can't tell from this lame cell!"

Though muffled he could still hear the thunder roaring in the distance. "Sounds like the storm is still out of control. I hope Miles and Amy are okay."

The pain was draining what little strength he had left. He felt himself blacking out and falling asleep, despite the immeasurable discomfort thanks to his injuries. "I can't give up... Not yet..."

His head fell limp, his chin resting against the upper part of his chest. The captive blue hedgehog had lost consciousness.

* * *

Despite the raging storm Amy was able to remain calm and focused on the mission at hand. She could no longer feel the wind and fortunately the rain had already stopped. From atop the roof Amy huddled down at the base of the antennae with the satchel in her lap. Her piko-piko hammer was resting on the ground at her side.

Curiously she looked down at the watch Miles had given her. The odd device was still strapped to her wrist. "I wonder what it'll do?" As she stared at the screen a sudden blip on the radar indicated an incoming target. "What's that?!"

Crouching in the shadow of the antennae she looked toward the sky and in the direction of the incoming reticle. A ball of orange light caught her eye as it loomed ever closer and closer to the tower.

"The Renegade Soldier. Miles found a way to track it!" Amy watched with a mixture of fear and anger at the approaching foe.

Lightning flashed, lighting up the entire city. The pink hedgehog was easily visible against the dark skyline.

The Renegade Soldier approached the balcony of the tower then paused momentarily, hovering in midair approximately ten feet from its destination. It was then the soldier looked up and directly into Amy's green eyes.

"I've been spotted!" She realized, her whole body trembling nervously.

The Renegade Soldier flew up and hovered ominously in the air, above the roof and above Amy. It pointed its hand at the pink hedgehog. It fired an energy beam from its finger tips.

Diving to the side Amy avoided the blast. She quickly ducked beneath the antennae and hid the satchel near the base in the shadow. ' _I can do this, I can do this!_ ' Running out into plain sight, with her piko-piko hammer in her grip Amy was ready to face the soldier.

"Come down here! Let's finish this, one on one!" She challenged confidently, trying to lure the soldier in closer.

The Renegade Soldier lowered its arm as it descended to the roof and landed several yards away from Amy. 'DO NOT RESIST. YOU ARE UNDER ARREST.'

"No way! I'm not going to be _anyone's_ prisoner, never again!" She raised her hammer high into the sky above her head. "One way or another, I'm going to stop you and then I'm going to stop Eggman!"

Taking heavy steps closer to the pink hedgehog, the Renegade Soldier lifted its arm once again and pointed its hand at the single target. 'DO NOT RESIST.' It demanded again in its soulless metallic voice.

' _A little bit closer, come on_...' As soon as the soldier was in striking range Amy lowered her hammer toward its head, but the soldier easily caught the hammer with one hand and stopped it mid-swing.

"Perfect!" Amy excitedly declared as she released her grip on the hammer's handle and pressed the button on the side of the watch.

A strong electromagnetic pulse was unleashed from the watch in a powerful wave that rippled through the night sky. The E.M.P. disabled the Renegade Soldier, as well as knocking out the power for the entire tower.

Amy shielded her eyes with her arm as she watched bolt of blue electrical current rage across the soldier's body. The soldier itself let out a metallic howl as its functions all shutdown simultaneously. The armored soldier collapsed into a heap of smoking useless metal on the roof at Amy's feet. Its strong hand releasing its grip on the piko-piko hammer as it fell.

Relieved to have finally taken down the Renegade Soldier, Amy fell to the roof on her knees and sighed.

The soldier's hand suddenly twitched.

In an instant Amy was back on her feet, her hammer in her grip and at the ready to swing.

It slowly raised its head and looked at Amy. "A-Amy...?" The metallic voice called out.

"You... You know who I am?" She asked confusedly, her hammer still ready to swing.

The soldier pushed itself up from the roof and kneeled down. It put its armored hands to its head and unlocked the helmet. Removing the helmet the solider was finally able to look the pink hedgehog in the face.

Even through the darkness of the night Amy immediately recognized the true identity of the Renegade Soldier. "It... It can't be! You're... You're _dead_..."

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	23. Reunion

Amy stood in awe at the sight before her. A friend, someone she cared about, long thought dead was now standing before her, alive and well. A conflicting combination of emotions overwhelmed her heart: joy, sorrow, anger, confusion... The harsh wind of the storm caused Amy's longer pink quills to billow around her face as she stood in a trance, watching her friend unsteadily rise to their feet.

"How... How is this possible?! You... you..." Amy dropped her hammer and put a hand to her mouth.

Standing up from the roof on shaking legs, the helmet was dropped from their grip without a second thought. "I'm... okay."

"Rouge?! We... I'm so sorry! I wouldn't have attacked you if-"

"Amy, it's okay." Rouge answered calmly, her teal eyes were red with exhaustion and pain. "You didn't know. How could you?"

Rouge fell to her knees, her body too weak to stand on her own. The armor was merely a shell for the being trapped inside. Eggman programmed the suit to obey his verbal commands after encasing Rouge inside. The high-tech computer programming prevented her from resisting his orders, from speaking out and revealing herself as the Renegade Soldier. Being trapped for years as this masked fiend had taken much of her natural physical strength away. She was now a shell of her former self.

"Rouge..." Amy kneeled down next to her friend and held her still armored hands in her own. "I'm so glad to see you!" A sincere tear rolled down Amy's face.

Rouge tried to smile, but she couldn't bring herself to even feign happiness. Her large round ears drooped down, her face was prematurely aged and sunken in from neglect. The once vibrant and mischievous eyes of the talented spy were dim and full or regret.

"Rouge, do you know... Where's Shadow?"

Rouge looked down and stared at her hands. "He... He tried to save me. He tried to destroy the armor but..."

"Where is he?"

"Eggman took him. He was put in a form of stasis... suspended animation. The capsule he was locked away in was sent back aboard the A.R.K."

"So... he's alive?"

"I don't know. I just don't know anymore..."

"Rouge, everything will be okay! Miles and I are here to rescue Sonic and-"

"Sonic?!" Rouge looked back up and into Amy's eyes with alarm. "He's... He's really alive?! I thought I was... I thought I was finally going insane... When I saw him..."

"No. He's here! Miles is inside and he's going to free him."

"But I... I attacked Sonic. He's hurt. He can't fight back!"

"We have a plan." Amy grinned confidently and nodded at her satchel hidden in the shadow of the antennae. "Just leave it to Sonic and Miles."

"Miles?" Rouge gave Amy an odd look. "Isn't that Tails' real name? I thought he hated it."

"It's... It's complicated. I'll explain later. If there's time."

Rouge nodded and dropped her head again. "I'm so tired... I can't move."

"Well, I bet you'd feel better if you had that heavy armor off of you!" Amy gently pulled the armored gauntlets from Rouge's hands, exposing the torn white gloves and bruised tan pelt beneath. "C'mon, let's get you out of that ugly mess!"

* * *

Miles easily navigated the air ducts as he swiftly descended floor by floor. No alarms had been sounded, no guards alerted and Miles had managed to keep his presence undetectable as he stealthily wove his way through the labyrinthine passageways. Climbing down one one massive vent Miles dropped ten feet down and onto the fortieth floor. "This should be it..."

Using the ventilation grates to look out from the vents into the hallway and into the locked rooms, Miles attempted to pinpoint Sonic's location. "This won't be easy, but I'm not going to give up."

After checking half of the rooms on the floor Miles finally came across the cell in which Sonic had been secured. Peering through the bars of the grate Miles spotted the blue hedgehog suspended from the ceiling in chains. He was unconscious and his bandages had fallen from his body, exposing the wounds to the world. "Sonic!"

Miles began pushing on the grate, loosening the cover from the vent. The grate let out a groan as the metal submitted to the pressure being applied and popped open from the vent. Jumping down from the vent onto the marble floor Miles carefully approached Sonic, not wanting to make a sound an alert a patrolling Badnik.

"Sonic? Miles walked up to his friend and pressed his fingers against Sonic's neck. "Hey, can you hear me?"

"T-Tails?" Sonic stuttered as he weakly opened his eyes.

"Yeah. It's me..." He turned and looked around the cell, his eyes focusing on a large control panel near the door. "I'm going to get you out of here. Hold on!"

Rushing to the panel Miles found the controls that kept the chains electronically suspended. He lowered the chains until Sonic was laying on the floor of the cell. With the flick of a switch the shackles on the chains unlocked, freeing Sonic's wrists from their bindings.

"Sonic?" Miles returned to the downed hedgehog. Using the bandages on the floor Miles wrapped Sonic's bleeding wrists and gently rested them on Sonic's chest. Lifting Sonic's head up from the ground Miles supported his injured friend. "Wake up, you're free!"

Sonic's eyes opened wider and he slowly focused on Miles' face. "Tails?"

"Yeah... Tails." He smiled sheepishly. "Get up! We need to get out of here and meet Amy."

"Amy? She's alright?"

"Yeah, she's fine. You saved her. And me."

Sonic smirked a little. "That's what friends do."

"C'mon." Miles wrapped Sonic's arm around his shoulder and stood up, supporting the hedgehog's weight as he rose from the floor. "Let's move."

Sonic leaned heavily against Miles' shoulder but managed to walk under his own power.

The cell door suddenly unlocked and opened from the other side. Eggman and a small squadron of scorpion-like Badniks walked into the cell and stood firm in the center of the room. "Well, well, well... If it isn't Miles Prower."

Miles sneered at Eggman. "Back off Eggman!" He demanded courageously. "You're not going to stop us."

Eggman flashed a twisted grin. "Don't count on it. You two are both going to become martyrs for your cause. And I will bask in the glory of your downfall."

Sonic stood upright, no longer needing Miles' assistance. "Eggman, you will pay for the crimes you've committed! Your little empire is going to crumble and you'll be nothing more than a pitiful memory."

Eggman pointed his finger at the duo and issued a command to the Badniks. "Fire!"

Miles put one hand on his belt and the other on Sonic's arm. "Hang on, I'll get us out of here!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	24. Up and Out

Sonic the Hedgehog, the world's best defense against Dr. Ivo 'Eggman' Robotnik, stood tall but tired next to Miles. Despite his injuries, despite his pain, despite all the doubt that was resting heavily in his heart, he refused to give up. "I trust you Tails. Whatever you're going to do, do it. I'll be right behind you."

Miles angrily stared past Eggman and his Badnik squadron to the opened cell door behind the sinister scientist, his blue eyes bright and fearless. With one hand on Sonic's arm and the other hovering over the button on his belt buckle, Miles prepared to finally press the glowing button. "See ya'!"

The button was pressed and it sent out a mini electrical shockwave that quickly disabled the scorpion Badniks that were positioned around Eggman. The mechanized goons collapsed into useless heaps of metal at Eggman's feet.

"What's this?!" Eggman took a step back and looked down at his incapacitated creations. "An E.M.P.? Clever..."

"That's not all!" Miles declared proudly as the rear of the belt sprouted a long, wide metallic appendage.

The appendage hooked onto Miles' single remaining tail and synchronized itself with the natural muscle movements and reflexes of the organic extremity. It was then Miles began spinning his tail and the metallic appendage did the same. Slowly he began hovering up from the ground into midair. Both of his hands now holding onto Sonic's arms just above the blue hedgehog's bloody wrists.

Miles had given himself a second tail. While locked away in his workshop Miles constructed for himself a portable prosthetic second tail concealed inside the inconspicuous belt. This seemingly impossible ability, one that everyone believed was gone, was now his secret weapon. Though metal and without feeling, the second tail and Miles seemed to be functioning as a single being.

"M-Miles? You're... FLYING!" Sonic stammered in joyous disbelief as he looked up at his friend. He felt his feet leaving the floor and he loved it!

Miles grinned at the hedgehog as he looked down at the memorized hedgehog. "It'll take more than the likes of _him_ to keep _me_ down!" He motioned toward Eggman. Miles tightened his grip on Sonic's arms. "Let's fly!"

Moving at an incredible speed Miles was able to easily fly past Eggman, carrying Sonic along the way, and hover through the lengthy corridors away from the dangerous foe. Eggman was knocked backward by the hasty exit and fell to the floor onto his back! The thick red cape tangled the downed humans arms and legs in the abundant fabric.

"Miles? Where are we going?" Sonic asked a little confused as he watched the many locked doors zip by him as Miles carried him down the corridor.

Miles grinned sheepishly. "Up! We're going up!"

"How?"

"Leave it to me!"

Miles and Sonic flew down the corridor without any difficulty. Eggman couldn't run fast enough and he didn't have time to get a second squad of Badnik goons on their trail.

The duo stopped at the end of the corridor in front of massive closed elevator doors. Landing onto the floor gently Miles began pushing on the doors, trying to pry them apart. Sonic assisted his creative friend. Working together the blue hedgehog and the twin-tailed fox forced the elevator doors opened. There was no car on the other side, only the large vacant space of the elevator shaft.

Miles poked his head through the doors looking up and down. "The elevator car's below us! We can get to the roof without anything in our way!"

Sonic nodded his head. "Alright, let's move!"

Grabbing ahold of Sonic's arms once again Miles lifted the hedgehog off the ground as his two tails spun together. Hovering into the elevator shaft Miles began ascending at a high rate of speed. At the top of the shaft was a large paneling that would lead the escaping heroes to the roof of the imposing tower.

On the roof, enduring the the end of the harsh summer storm, Amy was still awaiting her friends' arrival.

* * *

It was difficult process and arduous process but Amy managed to remove the remaining armor from Rouge's battered body revealing, the once untouchable, spy to the world, again.

"There! Feeling any better?" Amy asked sincerely as she tossed the final piece of the armor onto the growing pile of scrap metal behind her.

Rouge, still kneeling on the roof, looked at her torn gloves and worn out top. Even her white boots were damaged from the years she unwillingly spent as the Renegade Soldier. "I feel lighter." Rouge quipped, trying to keep the mood semi positive. "But I don't think I can fight. Not like this."

"That's okay, you won't have to." Amy reassured her friend. "Everything is going to be fine, I promise."

Rouge tried to lift her ears and her drooping black wings but didn't have the strength. "At least I have the chance to apologize to everyone in my own voice."

"Rouge, it's not your fault." Amy replied sympathetically. "I understand and so will everyone else."

"Understanding isn't the problem, _forgiveness_ is."

"It's not as big of a problem as you might think." Amy flashed her a kind smile and sat down next to the fatigued bat. "You'll see."

"Thanks Amy." Rouge closed her eyes and finally smiled a little.

A sudden rumbling noise, one that wasn't thunder, caught their attention. The sound was coming from the roof itself. Amy jumped up, grabbing her hammer and the satchel. She tossed the satchel to Rouge, who clumsily caught it, as she positioned herself between the downed bat and the source of the disturbance. A large panel, one that blended in perfectly with the roof, began lifting open from the underside.

Amy raised her hammer higher.

The panel opened up entirely as Miles and Sonic flew through the new opening and onto the roof.

"Miles! Sonic!" Amy happily cheered as she lowered her hammer.

"They're safe..." Rouge let out a sigh of relief.

Landing on the roof Miles and Sonic looked at Amy with confidence then they looked past the pink hedgehog to the white bat behind her.

"R-Rouge?!" Miles stammered. "Where did..." He then noticed the pile of armor that was once the Renegade Soldier. "No way..."

Amy noticed Miles second tail. "Miles! You can fly again! You made yourself a new tail, a prosthetic just like Tori!"

Smiling Sonic walked over to Rouge and held out his hand. "I'm happy to see you."

"Same goes for me." She took his hand and he gently pulled her to her feet. She noticed that Sonic was just as beaten up and worn out as she was. "Looks like we've both been through hell, huh?"

Sonic grinned. "Nothing we can't handle."

"Yeah." Rouge nodded, still clutching the satchel. "What's the plan?"

Miles walked up to Rouge and put his hand on her own and smiled warmly. "We work together." He took the satchel from her hands and opened up the leather pouch. Reaching inside he pulled out the purple Chaos Emerald. "It's time we set things right."

"How?" Rouge asked. "Fight back?"

"No." Miles took a deep breath. "Sonic uses the Chaos Emeralds to travel back in time, to the night he disappeared. It'll stop this horrible timeline from ever occurring."

The wind suddenly picked up violently. Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed as the storm clouds thickened and began approaching the tower. Sonic and Miles moved to the edge of the roof, putting themselves between Amy and Rouge in a protective manner.

Miles gave Rouge the satchel with the Chaos Emeralds as he studied the odd clouds. She tightly wrapped her arms around the satchel and wrapped her wings around her arms to protect herself from the blowing winds.

Amy stood behind Sonic, her long pink quills danced about her face wildly as she kept her ground behind her friend. She was very scared and shaking. Sonic reached back and took her hand in his. "It's okay. I'm here."

The thick black clouds suddenly parted with loud thunder echoing and lightning flashing through the sky. Hidden inside the clouds was a large battleship in the shape of a giant red dragon. Black smoke and fire oozed from the massive engines the propelled the ship into the sky.

Amy tightened her grip on Sonic's hand. "A fiery dragon... Just like that mural..."

Sonic's eyes widened at the thought of this mechanical dragon being able to destroy the world like an ancient monster. "Don't worry, we can stop it!"

From the head of the dragon a platform ascended from the interior of the ship to the exterior. Standing on the platform was Eggman himself.

"Did you really think I'd let you get away so easily?" His voice was deep, almost growling as he spoke. His red cape wiping wildly in the wind behind him. "One hour until sunrise, but you won't live to see it." He pointed at the four heroes standing on the roof, then solely at Rouge. "My Renegade Soldier may have been disabled, but my Badniks have organized squadrons all through this pitiful city and the Mystic Ruins. The destruction of the world you once knew and loved is at hand."

"NO!" Sonic yelled out at their enemy. "We won't let you do this, Eggman!"

Miles stood proudly at Sonic's side. "Even if takes every last bit of strength from out hearts, we'll never give up!"

Rouge and Amy stepped forward, standing at Miles and Sonic's sides at the edge of the roof defiantly.

"So be it..." Eggman folded his arms behind his back for a moment as he glared at his opponents. With one hand he waved toward the tower and hundred lights behind him began glowing brightly against the dark clouds. Each light represented the body of a dragonfly designed Badnik hovering silently and stealthily behind their creator. "Attack!"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	25. Super Charged

Sonic, Miles, Amy and Rouge stood firm on the roof as the swarm of dragonfly Badniks swiftly closed in. Sonic and Amy tightened the grip they shared with held hands while Miles reached back and took Rouge's hand in his own.

The storm had ended and the thick dark clouds were beginning break. The sight of the swarm was made all the more intense with the lack of cover to hide their mechanical forms.

Miles never looked away from the swarm as he addressed Sonic. "Call it Sonic. What's our move?"

"First of all," Sonic clenched his free hand into a fist. "we smash those bugs! Then we use the Chaos Emeralds to take down that airship."

"Right." Miles agreed. He turned to look at Rouge and Amy. "We'll smash the bugs from the air, you two stay on the roof and smash the stragglers."

Rouge nodded and prepared to fight, even though her body was weak. Amy took her hammer and held it with both hands. Together Rouge and Amy stood on the roof, back to back, with the satchel between them.

Miles took to the sky using his two tails as a propeller and offered his hands to Sonic. Sonic leapt into the air and took Miles' grip in his own. "Let's fly!"

Dipping and dodging between the Badniks Miles easily avoided the attacks while Sonic used his strong legs to knock the buzzing foes out of the way. Flying straight up Miles positioned himself and Sonic above the swarm. "Ready? Miles asked Sonic as he carefully eyed their target.

"Ready? Let's do this!"

Miles let Sonic fall from his grip and the blue hedgehog swiftly jumped from Badnik to Badnik using his powerful homing attack. Miles followed suit by dropping down onto the Badniks' backs and pulled the wires loose from their bodies. Steadily the swarm thinned as the Badniks were destroyed and disabled.

From the rooftop Amy crushed the Badniks with powerful swings from her hammer, while Rouge, despite her fatigue, was able to land impressive kicks and knock the buzzing baddies from the sky. With each impact from the hammer and kick the Badniks burst into smoldering heaps of fire and smoke as they spiraled wildly from the sky to the ground far below.

Still standing on the platform from the front of the airship Eggman watched in impatient disgust as his army was disposed of so easily. "Bah! You useless contraptions! Don't attack them one as a group, focus on one and eliminate!"

The Badniks responded to their master's orders and changed their attack strategy. Sonic and Miles watched in angered horror as the Badniks closed in on Rouge on the rooftop of the tower.

"We have to help her out!" Miles called out as he flew next to Sonic. His eyes fixed on Rouge being bombarded relentlessly.

"You're right, we need to move!" Sonic agreed and outstretched his hand for Miles to take.

Amy swung her hammer as quickly as she could to try to defend Rouge from the onslaught of fast Badniks, but she alone wasn't enough. Rouge was too tired to keep fighting and was on the verge of collapse.

"There's too many!" Rouge panted, her physical exhaustion was peaking. "I can't... I can't keep this up!"

"Just hold on!" Amy encouraged her fading friend. "Don't stop!"

Sonic and Miles returned to the roof and continued their own attack against the Badniks, keeping Rouge safely between them as they fought back.

Eggman watched from afar and grinned. "Perfect. Exactly where I want them." Taking a small detonator from his pocket Eggman pressed the red button. "Farewell..."

Explosions at the base of the tower instantly shook the building with a power tremor. The four heroes at the top of the building fell to their knees as they tried desperately to regain their balance. Miles hovered up from the building to observe the change in their environment. The thick black smoke that billowed from the explosions wafted high in the sky, the dark color emphasized by the rising sun piercing through the fading storm clouds.

Landing back on the roof Miles put his hands on Rouge's shoulders. "We need to get off the tower, fast!"

Sonic kneeled down by Amy. "How do we get down? You can only carry one at a time and Rouge doesn't have the strength to fly!"

Rouge pulled the satchel onto her lap and gave a confident grin to both Sonic and Miles. "I know of one way."

Sonic and Miles looked at the satchel then to each other and nodded. Sonic held out his hand in the shape of a fist. "Let's do it."

"Yeah," Miles put his hand on top of Sonic's. "as a team!"

"As friends." Sonic opened the satchel and offered it to Miles.

Together Sonic and Miles pulled the seven Chaos Emeralds from the satchel and held the precious gems in their hands. The power of the ethereal jewels emanated from their cores and flowed into the two heroes. In a rainbow colored aura the Chaos Emeralds lifted from their hands and circled around the brave the hedgehog and clever fox, as the heroic duo absorbed the power.

Sonic's blue fur began glowing as it transitioned into a brilliant gold hue. His vibrant green eyes becoming as red as blood and the spiky quills on the back of his head raised up higher than usual thanks to the abundant energy. The bleeding wounds on his wrists and the injuries to his chest and back healed over, leaving only the faintest of scars in their wake.

Miles' orange pelt brightened, flashing into a pure silver color that put his white pelt to shame. The gray metal of his prosthetic tail also turned silver. His intelligent sky blue eyes turned into a deeper amber color and his short bangs slightly spiked upward to the sky.

Sonic and Miles began floating in midair with their newly given power as they transformed into their Super forms. The Chaos Emeralds disappearing from sight as their physical forms were temporarily transferred into Sonic and Miles.

Eggman could see the haunting glow of their transformation and knew that had used the Chaos Emeralds. "It'll take more than a few shiny rocks to best me, Sonic the Hedgehog!"

Super Sonic looked down at Amy and offered his hand. Amy took it happily and felt a sense of peace as his warm glowing aura encompassed her. He picked her up from the ground and floated calmly above the still trembling building.

Super Miles offered his own hand to Rouge. She gave him a flirtatious smile as he helped up from the ground and held her in his arms just like Super Sonic. "What a gentleman." She playfully commented on the moment.

"Let's get away from here." Super Sonic led the way, Amy safe in his arms. The now golden hedgehog flew away from the collapsing building to carry his friend away from the immediate danger.

Robotnik Tower crumbled under its own weight, not at the hands of the heroes but at the hands of its own malicious creator. A symbol of Eggman's impending demise. At least that's what the four heroes hoped...

Super Miles flew close behind Super Sonic, careful not move too fast and possibly harm Rouge. He wasn't as accustomed to being in a Super form as Sonic was.

The Super charged duo flew toward the vacant beach of Emerald Coast just beyond the long abandoned hotel ,and gently let their friends out of their arms onto the soft, sandy terrain. The beach was far away from the battlefield, ensuring that Amy and Rouge wouldn't be harmed.

Amy grabbed ahold of Super Sonic's hand. "Please, be careful. You may have the power of the Chaos Emeralds but Eggman is still dangerous!"

Super Miles nodded and gave her a confident grin. "We'll be fine."

Rouge nodded and blew a kiss to the brave fox. "Come back safely!"

"Stay here." Super Sonic instructed the two ladies. "You'll be safe. We have a mad scientist to take down!"

"Okay..." Amy slowly and reluctantly retracted her hand from his.

"Everything will work out... in the end." He suddenly realized that as soon as the battle was over he'd have to use the Chaos Emeralds to travel into the past to change the current timeline for the better. The Amy Rose he had come to know in _this_ timeline would cease to exist. Giving into his spontaneous nature Super Sonic leaned down toward the pink hedgehog and quickly kissed her.

Amy blushed intensely as she received the unexpected but very welcomed kiss. "Sonic... What did..."

"See you on the other side!" Super Sonic gave Amy a thumbs and a wink as he took off back into the sky with Super Miles flying close behind.

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	26. Facing Off

In a glorious flashing aura of gold and silver Super Sonic and Super Miles flew gracefully into the sky. The fiery orange glow of the rising sun shined beyond their forms, giving the two heroes a halo of bright energy. The dark clouds continued to part allowing more rays of the rising sun to shine through.

From the beach of Emerald Coast Amy and Rouge watched with bated breaths as their two dear friends bravely soared off to battle.

Pressing her hand to her lips Amy still felt Sonic's kiss. "I've always wanted to kiss him, but not like this. Not through enduring chaos or violence." Closing her eyes she smiled to herself. "Be safe, my hero."

Still standing on the single pedestal at the head of his airship Eggman glared at the smoking ruins of his newly collapsed tower. Large, jagged metal beams jutted out from the pile of concrete dust, broken glass and twisted steel. Loosened electrical wires sparked while broken pipes leaked water and oil. The thick black smoke swirled and billowed as an acrid stench filled the air.

The ruined structure stood as mountain of rubble in the center of Station Square; a pitiful monument to Eggman's hostile nature.

Destroyed Badniks littered the already decimated locale. The broken mechanical forms twitched, sparked and powered down as the damage to their exterior forms no longer provided protection to their interior machinations.

"Where are they?" Eggman growled under his breath as he scanned the decaying battleground. A large control panel rose from the platform and surrounded his body in a 'u' shape.

Through the dark smoke that swirled above the ruins Super Sonic and Super Miles emerged in a shining aura. The heroes floated side by side as they stared angrily at the demented scientist.

"Right here, Eggman." Super Sonic declared boldly.

Eggman didn't flinch at the sight of the super charged heroes ready to face off against him. Instead he lifted his arm into the air, pointed at Super Sonic and Super Miles, then snapped his fingers.

At the signal the dragon shaped airship roared with a life of its own. The fire and smoke intensified as airship's 'claws' changed into the form two high powered laser cannons.

One cannon locked onto Super Sonic and the second locked onto Super Miles. The airship opened fire.

Super Sonic and Super Miles easily dodged the laser blasts with their great speed and reflexes. The faster they moved the faster the cannons fired.

"Sonic," Miles quickly noticed the pattern. "we need to move in closer. Line the cannons up with each other!"

"Right!"

Swiftly rising and falling in the sky, avoiding one blast after the other, the duo positioned themselves in front of the cannons and moved toward each other. The two cannons remained locked on their respective targets and fire. Super Sonic and Super Miles flew upward out of firing range as the two cannons fired at each other. The blasts instantly destroyed their own counterparts, leaving smoldering wreckage in their wake.

"Gah!" Eggman slammed his fist down angrily on the control panel. "I'm just getting warmed up!"

Pressing a red button the control panel unleashed a triple flamethrower attack against the heroes. Super Sonic and Super Miles wisely retreated from the airship out of range.

Super Sonic watched as the three torches waved back and forth as they swept across the sky. "Miles, go for the hinges at the base of torches!"

"Lead the way!"

Moving at blindly speeds the courageous duo charged the flamethrowers and used homing attacks to break apart the hinges. The massive flamethrowers stopped spitting fire as they fell free from their metal bindings of the airship. The massive weapons fell dead from the sky to the ground below.

Sneering Eggman pressed a yellow button on the control panel. Black orbs of electrical energy began peppering the sky as they fired from thousands of small ports that adorned all exterior panels of the airship.

"Now what?" Sonic asked as he nimbly wove through the blasts. "There's too many shots being fired and the airship's armor is too thick!"

The battle wasn't what they were expecting. Over the years Eggman refined his tactical approach, knowing that his Badniks and robots were easily taken down by Sonic and his allies, he chose a more advanced attack method. No longer using Badniks as his primary source of invasion; he had created a nearly indestructible airship to use as his flying fortress and tank. The initial Badnik squad was nothing more than pawns sacrificing themselves for their king.

Scanning over the intimidating floating weapon Miles tried to locate a potential weak point: the airship's 'Achilles heel'. With each blast of electrical projectiles Miles noticed a distinct sound of the ship's energy levels temporarily dropping. The weapons were almost too powerful, taxing the single fuel source to its limits.

"The energy core!" Miles answered abruptly as he closed in on the ship. "Destroy the core and the ship will go down. Then you can use the escaping energy to go back in time!"

"Are you sure?" Sonic didn't want any mistake to hinder their progress.

"Positive! Follow me!" Miles led the way through the swarm of energy blasts, his silver aura emanated brilliantly as he flew between the electrified orbs.

Keeping close to his friend Super Sonic watched as Super Miles navigated a route to the airship.

"Not so fast!" Eggman shouted out arrogantly. He slammed his fist down on a blue button.

A massive energy surge encompassed the airship and focused itself as a single force. The blast erupted from the the 'mouth' of the dragon as a massive ball of dark energy. It honed in on Super Sonic and Super Miles.

Miles saw the incoming projectile first. "Look out!" Without thinking he pushed Sonic aside and out of range. The silver fox took the full force of the attack and yelled out in pain.

"NO!" Sonic yelled just as loudly. Using his arm to shield his eyes Sonic could only call out to his friend. "TAILS!"

The impact sent out an electrified shockwave that stunned Sonic as it filled the air with static. A loud thunderous echo rumbled through the sky as sparks of dissipating energy showered in all directions.

Lowering his arms Super Sonic watched Miles, no longer in his Super form, fall from the sky unconscious. His body limp and charred from the brutal attack.

"Tails!"

Instinctively Super Sonic dove down from the sky chasing after his felled friend. Flying as fast as he could Super Sonic pursued the injured fox as he fell helplessly to the battered earth below. Closing in on Miles Super Sonic reached out his hand and grabbed ahold of Miles arm. Pulling Miles close to his chest Super Sonic turned in midair so his own back was to the ground and Miles was facing the sky above. Wrapping his arms around Miles to hold him steady Super Sonic closed his eyes and prepared for the impact of his charged body against the ground.

Super Sonic crashed into the earth like a meteor. A large crater indented the ground where Super Sonic and Miles now laid. The heat of the impact caused a small smoke cloud to rise up and obscure the sight of the imposing airship above.

"Tails?" Super Sonic gently floated up from the crater with Miles in his arms. He laid the horribly injured fox down on the ground next to the crater. "Tails..."

Miles body was burned across his chest and arms. The prosthetic tail had been destroyed by the electrical charge leaving only charred metal behind.

"S... Sonic?" Miles slowly opened his blue eyes.

"Tails? Why did you..."

"Are you... okay?"

 _ **...to be continued...**_


	27. Restoration

Super Sonic kneeled protectively over Miles, who lay on the ground beside the massive crater created after their falling bodies impacted the hard earth. Black burns marred Miles' chest, staining his white pelt black and leaving portions of his orange fur scorched. He could only open his blue eyes half way to see his friend at his side.

"Tails... You sacrificed yourself to save me..." Super Sonic put arm under Miles' head and lifted him up from the ground.

Miles smiled a little. "That's what friends do. Right?"

"Right..." Looking back up to the sky to the massive airship floating above, Super Sonic knew he had to keep fighting but he didn't want to leave Miles alone. "I have to stop that thing."

"Go. You can do it."

"But... it took away the power of the Chaos Emeralds when you were hit! What's to stop it from doing the same thing to me?"

"Nothing." Miles admitted, blinking slowly while struggling to keep his eyes focused on Sonic's face. "You can't afford to be struck down. The reason the energy core will allow you to travel back in time is why it was able to neutralize the power of the Chaos Emeralds. The energy emits the _same_ frequency of power."

"How did Eggman..." Sensing danger Super Sonic grabbed Miles and dove to the side. A massive chunk of debris fell from the unstable Robotnik Tower, nearly crushing the duo. "That was close!"

"Sonic, listen to me." Miles was too weak to sit up or move. He rested in Sonic's arms without protest. "Eggman has had years to study the Chaos Emeralds without interference from us or anyone else. He knows more about them than we do."

"So how do I beat him?"

"Like you always do. You gotta' go fast! Run."

"Run... But what about you? You're defenseless."

"If everything goes according to plan then this timeline won't exist. My injuries, Knuckles death... All of it will be prevented! Don't worry about me, just go! Now! We need you to do this!"

Super Sonic closed his red eyes and took a breath. He looked down at Miles one more time and nodded. "You're right. See you on the other side... Tails."

Miles smiled. "To be honest with you, Sonic, I was actually very happy when I first heard you call me 'Tails' that day in the workshop."

Laughing a little Super Sonic carried Tails up from the ground and to an isolated spot on the top of a distant building. "You'll be safe up here."

"Go! Don't let Eggman get away with this!"

Giving Tails a thumbs up Super Sonic flew off toward the airship at full speed. His golden form glowing against the dark energy balls as he easily wove between the shots, avoiding any and all damage. The incredible energy and heat that emanated from the blasts was enough to cause Sonic's fur to become charged with static electricity.

Without fear, without hesitation Super Sonic aimed for the gaping maw of the 'dragons mouth' that was the point of the airship.

Eggman watched as the golden blur vanished from sight, entering the airship in a burst of brilliant speed. "What?! No!"

Super Sonic raced through the long metallic corridor that led directly to the heart of the engine room of the airship. Contained inside was the massive black energy core that powered the oppressive aircraft.

"Found you!" Super Sonic declared. He hovered a few feet from the powerful orb, his fur being pulled toward the core of the powerful device. "Now... to set things right!"

Flying in a circle around the energy core, Super Sonic increased his speed with each lap. Faster and faster the heroic hedgehog raced, the power of the energy core building and bonding with the power of the Chaos Emeralds that now flowed through his body.

"Almost there... Come on!" Sonic yelled out loud, encouraging himself to fly even faster! "Let's do this!"

* * *

From the outside of the airship Tails watched as the energy blasts slowed then stopped altogether. The ship itself becoming cloaked in static and bolts of electricity. The airship began losing altitude, falling from the sky toward the ruined city below.

"You can do it Sonic!" Tails said to himself. "We never stopped believing in you."

* * *

Feeling his heart pounding out of his chest and the wind that soared through his fur growing hotter by the second, Super Sonic felt as though he was reaching his limit. The sound of his own racing heart filled his ears as visions, memories of the timeline appeared before him:

Meeting Tori the Otter for the first time, reuniting with Miles/Tails in his workshop, seeing the scars on Miles' back, seeing the Renegade Soldier, visiting Knuckles' grave, returning to the Echidna Temple, reuniting with Amy Rose and Cream the Rabbit, seeing the mural shrine and the Master Emerald, running through the Lone Oasis and retrieving the Chaos Emerald, being shot by the Renegade Soldier, Amy tending to his injuries, being captured by the Renegade Soldier, confronting Eggman, being imprisoned, being rescued by Miles, Miles' prosthetic tail, escaping to the roof of Robotnik Tower, reuniting with Rouge the Bat, powering up with the Chaos Emeralds, saying goodbye and kissing Amy, watching Miles fall from the sky...

One by one the images faded away as the time stream began to open, making a passage for Super Sonic to travel. A long red tunnel of energy opened in front of Sonic, he flew down the winding ethereal pathway. As he traveled back in time, his mind set on the very night he disappeared six years ago, the power of the Chaos Emeralds faded from his body one by one.

For each year Sonic traveled backward in time a Chaos Emerald's energy was spent. The energy core, though an adequate substitute for the lightning that allowed Sonic to travel to the future to begin with, simply wasn't as strong.

* * *

Outside the airship dipped lower and lower, coming closer to the ground. The impact would destroy the airship and anyone inside...

"Sonic... hurry!" Tails pleaded. "Do it for all of us!"

* * *

Just as Sonic felt the last of his strength give out, his body falling and his eyes closing, he felt a final surge of energy pull him through time and beyond the time stream. The last thing Sonic was aware of was his Super charge failing and his body tumbling helplessly as he was pulled by the forces of time itself.

Everything fell black and silent...

An odd tickling sensation on the tip of his nose was enough to rouse Sonic. He opened his green eyes and saw a bright blue butterfly sitting on his nose. "What the... haven't we met before?" He asked casually as he waved the harmless creature from his nose. Pushing himself up from the ground he rested on his knees and looked around. "I'm in the Mystic Ruins..."

Sonic was laying under the long stone bridge that acted as the railway connecting the Mystic Ruins to Station Square. It was completely in tact, no damage.

"Did... did it work?" Sonic asked as he stood up on his shaking legs. The storm clouds above parted revealing a beautiful rising sun beyond Tails' workshop. "Tails!"

Running as fast as he could up the stone steps Sonic burst into the workshop and called out for his friend. "Tails! Tails?"

"Sonic? What's wrong?" Tails asked he walked away from his workbench and to his startled friend. "Are you alright?"

Sonic smiled as he watched Tails approach. He was the same Tails he had left behind those six years ago. Shorter with two complete ears and two long tails. "It worked..."

"What worked? Hey, are you alright?"

"I am now..." Sonic sighed in relief, his tone shaking and tears welling up in his eyes.

"Sonic, what happened to you! You act like you've just seen a ghost." Tails put his hand on Sonic's arm. "Tell me about what happened."

"Y-yeah... I will." Sonic realized that he had clutching the red Chaos Emerald the entire time. "Look, we need to discuss this time traveling experiment you're working on. And, well, ever been to the ruins of the Nova Dunes?"

"No... Should I?"

"Just... trust me. I have so much tell you..."

"Sonic, is everything okay?"

"It will be." He gazed confidently at the Chaos Emerald in his hand. "I promise!"

 _ **-The End**_

 **Author's Note:** Thanks you so much for all those who read and reviewed this story. I had no idea it'd be so well received and I appreciate it!

To answer a question: Yes, Tori the Otter is an O.C. of mine. I made her because it bothers me that Sonic's main weakness is water and yet, despite befriending dozens of animal allies, he doesn't have a single aquatic based companion.


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